Meta has warned that the EU's approach to regulating artificial intelligence (AI) risks the continent losing access to advanced services. This comes as the EU continues its efforts to rein in the power of major tech companies.
Rob Sherman, Deputy Data Protection Officer and Vice President of Policy for the social network, confirmed a report that Meta had received a request from the EU data protection authority to voluntarily pause training its future AI models with data from the region. This measure is intended to give local regulatory authorities time to address the issue of generative AI.
Although Meta complies with the request, Sherman said that such steps could lead to a 'gap in the technologies available in Europe' compared to the rest of the world. With future and more advanced AI versions, it is likely that their availability in Europe will be affected.
Sherman emphasized: "If the jurisdictions fail to regulate in a way that gives us clarity about what is expected, it will become more difficult for us to offer the most advanced technologies in these regions ... It is a realistic outcome that concerns us.
These comments come at a time when major technology companies and start-ups are competing to commercialize AI products while also being constrained by the extensive digital regulations of the EU, including the new Artificial Intelligence Act. This law aims to regulate the development of the most powerful models and services.
According to Sherman, the most recent request from the EU is primarily due to uncertainty about whether training AI models with consumer data is permissible under the rules of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). These rules require companies that collect or use personal data to obtain the consent of the individuals and disclose the reason for data usage.
Sherman stated that Meta could not "adequately serve" European consumers without the ability to access European data, as the AI would be less effective and unable to respond to the "cultural concepts and contexts" it requires.
Meta has already delayed the introduction of its Meta AI assistant and a new version of its Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses with an embedded assistant due to regulatory and data protection concerns in the EU and the United Kingdom. The assistant is now available in 22 countries, including the USA, Australia, and Argentina, and in new languages such as French, Spanish, and Hindi.
Apple has also announced that it will not launch several features under its Apple Intelligence brand due to concerns related to the EU's Digital Markets Act.
The EU stated that it does not comment on individual business decisions but added that it is "an attractive market with 450 million potential users and has always been open for business to any company that wishes to offer services in the European single market," provided that they comply with the law.
Sure, here is the translation:
"Despite the cessation of training for future models, Meta released an updated version of its AI models – Llama 3.1 – on Tuesday, which will be available in Europe and worldwide. This includes a new model with 405 billion parameters, which Meta has described as 'the largest and most powerful open model in the industry.' A higher number of parameters is often seen as an indicator of better performance.
