Commission proposes new liability rules for artificial intelligence

November 04 , 2022 // Legal Reforms and Debate

Published in Cuatre Casas

The European Commission has presented two legislative proposals that introduce liability rules for Artificial Intelligence (“AI”): (i) the proposal to revise Council Directive 85/374/CEE, of July 25, 1985, on the approximation of the laws, regulations and administrative provisions of the Member States regarding liability for damage caused by defective products (“RPD Directive”) and (ii) the proposal for a specific Directive on liability in matters of AI.

With these proposals, the EU intends to adapt the strict liability regime to the digital age. Proposal to modernize the existing rules on the strict liability of manufacturers for defective products.

With the revision of the RPD Directive, the legislator reinforces a regulation that is almost forty years old, which does not cover categories of products derived from new digital technologies, such as smart products and AI. Therefore, the revision of the text aims to establish fair and predictable rules that are adapted to new types of products, thus providing legal certainty to companies and consumers.