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European Commission Considering Delaying Full Implementation of AI Act by a Year

By  |  November 7, 2025
AI Act Europe

The European Commission is considering a plan to delay parts of its landmark AI Act in the face of fierce opposition to the law from U.S. technology companies and the Trump administration. According to a Financial Times report Friday, the plan calls for granting the most advanced AI models that are subject to the law’s most stringent regulation a one-year “grace period” on compliance to give developers “sufficient time for adaptation of” their designs and operations.

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    The plan would also grant providers of generative AI models that are already in the market a grace period “to adapt their practices within a reasonable time without disrupting the market,” the FT reported.

    The proposed grace period is included in a broad digital “omnibus” package of measures under consideration by the Commission aimed at simplifying the EU’s sprawling web of digital regulations. Other proposed changes to the AI Act under consideration, according to an early draft of the package viewed by MLex, include greater centralization of enforcement under the Commission’s AI Office, extension of carve-outs for SMEs on penalties and documentation requirements to small mid-cap companies and a grace period on AI transparency and content labeling requirements for generative AI developers.

    Per MLex, no final decision has been reached on the proposed grace periods.

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    Read more: Microsoft Expands Into Medical Superintelligence Amid Growing Focus on AI Regulation

    The AI Act came into effect in August 2024, but some of provisions relating to models that pose the greatest systemic risk do not come into force until August 2026. However, in the wake of a September 2024 report on European competitiveness by former European Central Bank president Mario Draghi that criticized the EU’s thicket of technology regulations, the Commission has been on a drive to simplify the rules and ease the compliance burden on companies.

    The EU has also been under intense pressure from the Trump administration to weaken regulations on U.S. tech companies. Trump recently threatened to impose steep tariffs on countries with technology regulations or digital taxes deemed to be “designed to harm or discriminate against American technology,” per the Guardian.

    A senior EU official told the Financial Times that Brussels has been “engaging” with the Trump administration on potential adjustments to the AI Act and other digital regulations as part of a broader effort to simplify the legislative framework.

    As part of the planned digital omnibus package, the Commission issued a “call for evidence” in September 2025, seeking input on how best to simplify its regulations affecting data governance, cybersecurity and AI.

    “We need to make doing business in Europe easier without compromising our high standards of online fairness and safety,” Commission executive VP for tech sovereignty, security and democracy Henna Virkkunen said. “We aim for less paperwork, fewer overlaps and less complex rules for companies doing business in the EU.”

    The final draft of the proposed changes is due to be released November 19. It would then need to be approved by the European Parliament and the European Council comprised of representatives from the member states.