Lawmakers backlash after OpenAI CEO threatens to leave the EU

LONDON/STOCKHOLM, May 25 (Reuters) – Sam Altman, CEO of Microsoft’s OpenAI (MSFT.O), has spent months telling lawmakers around the world that a new urged the establishment of rules. He threatened on Wednesday that ChatGPT makers could leave the EU if the region “overregulates”.

Over the past week, Altman has criss-crossed Europe, meeting with top politicians from France, Spain, Poland, Germany and the UK to discuss the future of AI and progress on ChatGPT.

More than six months after OpenAI unveiled its AI-powered chatbot ChatGPT to the world, concerns about its potential have sparked excitement, alarm, and clashes with regulators.

One place Altman wasn’t able to visit this week is Brussels, where EU regulators are working on the long-awaited EU AI law, which could be the world’s first rule governing AI.

Altmann has canceled a planned visit to Brussels, two sources said. OpenAI did not respond to a request for comment.

“The current draft EU AI law will be over-regulatory, but I hear it will be withdrawn,” Altman said Wednesday in London.

EU lawmakers responsible for enacting AI legislation challenged Altman’s claims. Romanian European MP Dragos Tudrache, who is leading the drafting of the EU proposal, told Reuters: “I don’t think there will be any dilution in the near future.”

“Nevertheless, we are pleased to invite Mr. Altman to parliament to express our concerns and hear the views of MEPs on these issues,” he said.

EU industry chief Thierry Breton also criticized the threat, saying the draft rules were not for negotiation.

With Altman’s busy schedule of meetings with world leaders including British Prime Minister Rishi Snak and French President Emmanuel Macron, OpenAI is expected to discuss in more detail on Thursday how AI should be regulated. be done.

MPs are not ‘intimidated’

Dutch parliamentarian Kim van Sparentak, who also helped draft the EU bill, said she and her colleagues “should not be intimidated by American companies”.

“If OpenAI fails to comply with basic data governance, transparency, safety and security requirements, the system will not fit the European market,” she said.

By February, ChatGPT had set a record for the fastest growing user base ever among consumer application apps.

OpenAI first clashed with regulators in March, when Italian data regulator Galante shut down the app in the country and accused OpenAI of violating European privacy rules. ChatGPT is back online after the company implemented new privacy measures for its users.

Meanwhile, EU lawmakers have added new proposals to the bloc’s AI law, requiring companies using generation tools like ChatGPT to disclose copyrighted material used to train the system. rice field.

EU parliamentarians agreed to a draft of the bill earlier this month. Member States, the European Commission and parliament will consider the final details of the bill.

Individual member states such as France and Poland can also seek amendments through the Council of Europe before the bill could be passed later this year.

Planning in “full swing”

The bill has been in the works for several years, but new provisions specifically aimed at generation tools were made just weeks before the final vote on the proposal.

Reuters previously reported that some lawmakers had initially proposed an outright ban on copyrighted material used to train generative AI models, but this is now in favor of stronger transparency requirements. reportedly abandoned.

“These provisions are primarily about transparency, ensuring trust in AI and the companies that build it.

Nils Lauer, a technology partner at law firm Pinsent Masons, said it was “unsurprising” that Mr. Altmann made the comment while lawmakers were weighing the proposal.

“OpenAI is unlikely to turn its back on Europe. The EU is too important economically,” he said. “We cannot carve out a single market with a population of nearly 500 million and an economy of €15 trillion ($16.51 trillion).”

Altmann said he traveled to Munich, Germany, on Thursday to meet with Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

German parliamentarian Sergei Lagodinsky, who also helped draft the bill, said Altmann may be trying to push his policies around the world, but Brussels’ plan to regulate the technology is “in full swing.” there is,” he said.

“Of course there may be some modifications,” he said. “But I doubt they’ll change the overall trajectory.”

(1 dollar = 0.9084 euro)

Reporting by Martin Coulter and Supantha Mukherjee. Additional reporting by Alexander Hübner from Munich and Andreas Linke from Berlin.Editing: Susan Fenton

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