The Cypriot presidency of the Council of the EU and the European Parliament confirmed the agreement following negotiations that started on Wednesday evening and lasted until around 4.30 a.m. on Thursday.
POLITICO reported earlier Wednesday that EU countries had backed Germany’s demand to avoid a double regulatory burden for companies using industrial AI — they will now only have to comply with AI requirements under separate machinery rules.
Other industries under discussion including medical devices were not exempted and will still be covered by the AI law, negotiators confirmed.
The deal marks the first significant rollback of rules in the digital space, as the EU faces pressure from the U.S. over its tech laws and amid warnings from its own industry and governments that strict restrictions had put the bloc at a disadvantage in a global AI race.
Welcoming the deal, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said it “provides a simple, innovation-friendly environment” for AI in Europe. “At the same time, we are strengthening protections for our citizens. For safe and simple AI governance in Europe,” she said on X.
As well as delaying restrictions on high-risk AI until December 2027, the deal gives companies a grace period on meeting new requirements to watermark AI-generated content, but that grace period will only be three months rather than the six months originally proposed.