Henna Virkkunen, the Executive Vice-President of the European Commission for Technological Sovereignty, Security, and Democracy, expressed optimism about the EU enhancing its role and competing with the US and China in artificial intelligence during an interview with “Naftemporiki” at the 25th Brussels Economic Forum.
While acknowledging that the EU is currently trailing behind the US and China in a challenging geopolitical and economic landscape, Virkkunen shared her belief that the competition is far from over.
“We are convinced that, at least in the realm of artificial intelligence, the race is not concluded. We have our own strengths to build upon. Our research capabilities and scientific workforce are robust, and we boast around 7,000 startups focused on AI development. By investing in these ventures, we can significantly enhance innovation in the sector. Within a year, we anticipate increasing our computing capacity fivefold. Notably, one of our supercomputers, the National Supercomputer ‘Daedalus,’ is located in Greece,” Virkkunen highlighted.
Simplification
The European Union’s groundbreaking regulations on artificial intelligence are just a year old, yet Brussels is already indicating a willingness to amend them due to market pressures and the influence of the United States.
While the EU is approaching the new terminology with caution, the focus has shifted toward simplifying the regulations rather than easing them: “We acknowledge the public remarks made by US officials, but in the EU, we prioritize our own values.”
“Our aim is to streamline the regulations not to benefit the major players, but rather to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Large corporations typically have the resources to manage both development and bureaucratic challenges.”
