EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen commented on the new provisional agreement proposing to streamline rules regarding artificial intelligence (AI), reached May 7 between the Council and the European Parliament.
In a post on X, she stated: “I welcome the political agreement on our Digital Omnibus on AI. This provides a simple, innovation-friendly environment for our European AI ecosystem to grow. At the same time, we are strengthening protections for our citizens. For safe and simple AI governance in Europe.”
The EU AI Act and ongoing criticism
The world’s first comprehensive regulation on AI – the EU AI Act – entered into force in 2024 and was expected to become fully applicable and enforceable by August 2, 2026, with some exceptions.
The Act established a risk-based classification system under which AI systems are analysed and categorised according to the level of risk they pose to users. Different risk levels correspond to different compliance requirements.
Read more: The EU AI Act: Safeguarding the future or slowing it down?
Since its implementation, the Act has been subject to criticism, including questions over whether it could hinder European development compared to strategies adopted by others including the United States or China.
Omnibus VII proposal seeks simplification
The latest proposal is a part of the so-called “Omnibus VII” legislative package under the EU’s simplification agenda. According to the European Council, the package includes proposals for two regulations aiming to simplify the Union’s digital legislative framework and its implementation of harmonized AI rules.
Read more: EU’s AI Omnibus signals shift from regulation to deployment
Since February 2025, and in response to a request from the European Council, the Commission has presented 10 simplification proposals – also referred to as “omnibuses” – to stakeholders. The stated aim is to reduce the complexity of EU requirements for businesses and boost competitiveness while preserving the EU’s economic, social and environmental objectives.
“Although the law has not yet been formally amended, today’s announcement is a clear signal that it is overwhelmingly likely to happen. There is now a race against the clock to get the official regulation passed before the 2 August 2026 applicability date,” noted Oliver Patel, head of enterprise AI governance at AstraZeneca.
As per the Council, the implementation timeline would shift the application of rules on high-risk AI systems by up to 16 months, allowing for application only once the Commission confirms that the necessary standards and tools are available.
The Commission also proposed targeted amendments to the AI Act which would expand regulatory exemptions currently available to SMEs to also cover small mid-cap companies, ease requirements in select cases, and allow greater use of sensitive personal data for detecting and reducing bias in AI systems – while strengthening the AI Office’s authority and streamlining governance to reduce fragmentation.
Marilena Raouna, Deputy Minister for European Affairs of the Republic of Cyprus, stated that the agreement supports companies by reducing administrative costs, ensuring legal certainty, improving the implementation of rules across the EU, and strengthening the bloc’s competitiveness.
“This agreement is clear evidence of our institutions’ ability to act swiftly and deliver on our commitments. It marks the first deliverable under the ‘One Europe, One Market’ roadmap agreed by the three institutions last week, well within the set deadline,” she added.
Among the agreement’s new provisions is also an amendment to the AI Act prohibiting AI practices involving the generation of non-consensual sexual and intimate content or child sexual abuse material.
Read more: European Commission investigates Elon Musk’s Grok after reports of sexualized content of children
The provisional agreement also introduces a fixed timeline for the delayed application of high-risk AI rules. Under the proposal, the new application dates would be December 2, 2027, for stand-alone high-risk AI systems and August 2, 2028, for high-risk AI systems embedded in products.
Next steps before formal adoption
These modifications, among others, were reported by the European Council, but the agreement must now be endorsed by the Council and the European Parliament before undergoing legal and linguistic revision ahead of the formal adoption of the legislative act by the co-legislators in the coming weeks.
Although the timeline changes are among the most notable elements of the agreement, the core structure and logic of the AI Act seem to remain broadly intact.