Every article that follows an EU policy instrument: the laws, proposals and strategies shaping tech in Europe.
While political agreement on online age verification has not been reached, the EU is now focusing on the technical implementation layer instead. This approach could backfire from both a technical standpoint and in terms of political optics.
The EU’s AI Omnibus is finally here, but some criticize it for a lack of ambition. While the EU must still formally approve the AI Omnibus, focus now shifts to the second leg of the EU’s digital simplification efforts: the Digital Omnibus package, which is crucial for AI development and data.
The European Commission just gave itself a positive review on the DMA, but Dirk Auer of the ICLE argues this self-grading ignores the DMA’s real costs: broken features, delayed AI, and a decline in European competitiveness. Is the "tech referee" grading its own homework too generously?
EU DMA proposals could force Google to share sensitive search data with third parties in ways that may weaken privacy, cybersecurity, and consumer choice. As debate grows, the real question is whether competition can be increased without putting European users at risk.
Siemens warned that EU regulations are driving industrial giants toward the US and China. As the "Trump Effect" lures factories away with tax cuts and deregulation, Europe faces a high-stakes choice regarding data rules and the chip dilemma of speed vs. sovereignty.
The European Commission launched an age verification app this week. This is likely to serve as a start for a broader legislative initiative to legalise age-verification and subsequent restrictions on minors.
As politicians rush to impose blanket social media bans on minors, recent Council of Europe recommendations urge a smarter approach. They stress that online safety measures must protect children without sacrificing their freedom of expression or cutting off essential digital access
While the EU works to simplify data rules and boost Europe’s data economy, the incoming Roadworthiness Package may restrict vehicle data sharing to public authorities only - potentially shutting out private European companies and weakening consumer choice.
As AI grabs the spotlight, Europe’s data economy still powers billions in value, yet fragmented GDPR enforcement continues to hold innovators back. The Digital Omnibus was meant to help, but the EU now risks retreating from even modest reform.
“If it looks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it probably is a duck.” The DMA looks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck — yet many insist it is a chicken.
405 scientists from 30 countries warn teen social-media bans and age checks can backfire. In a Monday statement, they urge a moratorium until evidence is clearer, citing easy circumvention, migration to risky fringe sites, and years-long infrastructure hurdles.
Europeans and Americans talk past each other while rivals watch. The EU can set its own standards, but in an interconnected economy, decoupling fantasies and grandstanding won’t help.
Analysis of EU innovation, consumer and tech policy
