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EU AI Act changes explained: high-risk AI rules delayed, industrial carve-outs added

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Why the EU rewrote its landmark AI law

Changes to the AI Act reveal a growing debate in Brussels over whether regulation is slowing innovation — even as critics argue the law has barely been implemented.

App icons, Oregon, United States, September 2024 . (Ted Hsu)

By

Peder Schaefer

Peder Schaefer is a Brussels-based journalist.

10 Jun 2026

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In December 2023, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen hailed the newly finalized EU Artificial Intelligence Act as a law that “transpose European values to a new era.” Three years later, after major revisions to the same legislation, she described it instead as creating “a simple, innovation-friendly environment.”

The shift in Von der Leyen’s rhetoric — from values-driven governance to innovation-focused regulation — reflects a broader change in Brussels' regulatory posture over the past three years. The AI Act has become one of the chief examples of that evolution.

The amendments finalized on May 7 postponed the implementation of rules governing AI systems in high-risk settings until 2027 or 2028, and removed industrial applications from the scope of those requirements altogether.

Crucially, however, the revisions left intact the timetable for rules covering general-purpose AI models developed by companies like OpenAI and Anthropic, which are set to take effect in August. As a result, some analysts and lawmakers argue that while the AI Act's implementation timeline has been relaxed, its core regulatory framework remains intact.

“The fundamental ambition of the legislation has not changed as dramatically as some commentators would say,” said Nicole Lemke, a senior policy researcher working on AI systems at the European think tank Interface. “The AI Act was always, and still is, based on a risk-based architecture.”

What has changed in the EU AI Act?

When the AI Act was initially approved in early 2024, it set out ambitious deadlines for regulating high-risk AI systems deployed in areas like employment, critical infrastructure or biometric identification. It also introduced rules for the general-purpose AI models powering systems like ChatGPT, Claude and Mistral.

Under the revisions, the implementation deadline for high-risk AI systems has been pushed back from August 2026 to December 2027, while requirements for AI integrated into products already covered by sector-specific regulations have been delayed until August 2028.

The extensions will allow the European Commission more time to finalize guidance on identifying high-risk systems after months of holdups, while also providing companies with a longer runway to prepare for compliance.

The other major change concerns AI used in industrial machinery, including applications in car manufacturing and advanced lithography machines that make semiconductor chips. Securing an exemption for industrial uses was a priority for German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who wanted to ensure Germany’s legacy industries could deploy AI freely.

As a result, companies in these sectors will be subject only to existing sector-specific regulations. According to Julie Gabriel, co-founder and CEO of eyreACT, a company that automates EU AI Act compliance, the carve-out could offer an early hint at how the EU's approach to AI regulation may evolve in the years ahead.

The revisions also introduced several narrower changes, including new bans on using AI to generate child sexual abuse material and on so-called “nudifier” apps that create non-consensual intimate images.

But some lawmakers argue that the EU could have gone much further in simplifying the law. Axel Voss (EPP, DE), a shadow rapporteur on the amendments, said the package's only substantial deregulatory measure was the industrial carve-out. Beyond that, he argued, the law remains largely unchanged, with most modifications merely amounting to delayed implementation deadlines.

Why change the EU AI Act now?

The broader question for policymakers and analysts is why the EU moved to amend the AI Act so soon after its adoption in 2024. Supporters argue the changes were needed to boost European competitiveness in the global AI race. Critics, however, contend this narrative was pushed by lobbying from major U.S. tech firms and that the law had scarcely begun to take effect.

Much of the simplification drive across the EU's digital agenda can be traced to the 2024 Draghi Report, which urged the EU to accelerate innovation in strategic technologies.

That message has since been embraced by influential technology lobbying groups, including AmCham EU, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to the EU, and the ACT Association, a group representing small and mid-sized technology companies.

A joint letter by American and European industry groups published in April 2026 stated they...