EU proposes looser digital rules
The EU’s proposed 'Digital Omnibus' would roll back selected parts of the AI Act and GDPR in an effort to boost competitiveness, according to reporting. (thenextweb.com) Startup-focused commentary warns that the AI Act is already live and that shifting rules create compliance risks for startups that don’t track changes closely. (blog.mean.ceo)
The European Commission has put forward a “Digital Omnibus” package that would soften parts of the European Union’s digital rulebook, including the Artificial Intelligence Act, to cut compliance burdens for companies. (digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu) The Commission published the package on November 19, 2025, and said the broader digital proposal is meant to bring “immediate relief” to businesses, public administrations, and citizens while supporting competitiveness. (digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu) In a separate press release on the same simplification drive, the Commission said related measures would save companies another €400 million a year in administrative costs, on top of €8 billion already targeted in earlier efforts. (ec.europa.eu) The Artificial Intelligence Act is already in force. The law entered into force on August 1, 2024, banned certain artificial intelligence practices from February 2, 2025, and starts applying rules for general-purpose artificial intelligence models from August 2, 2025. (digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu, digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu) That timing has turned the Commission’s rewrite into a practical compliance issue for startups and model providers that have already been mapping products to the existing law. The Commission says its proposal is “targeted simplification” for “timely, smooth, and proportionate implementation” of selected Artificial Intelligence Act provisions. (digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu) The package also reaches beyond artificial intelligence. The Commission’s May 21, 2025 simplification plan proposed changes to Regulation (EU) 2016/679, the General Data Protection Regulation, as part of a push to extend lighter obligations to small and mid-cap firms. (single-market-economy.ec.europa.eu, ec.europa.eu) European officials are framing the shift as a competitiveness measure rather than a repeal. The Commission says the aim is to free resources for growth and investment while keeping “high standards” in place across the single market. (ec.europa.eu, ec.europa.eu) Reporting and industry commentary have cast the move more bluntly, describing it as a rollback after months of complaints that Europe’s artificial intelligence rules could leave local firms at a disadvantage against rivals in the United States and elsewhere. (thenextweb.com, thenextweb.com) The next step is legislative, not rhetorical. The omnibus proposals now have to move through the European Parliament and the Council, so companies are left planning around rules that are partly live, partly delayed, and still open to amendment. (digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu, eur-lex.europa.eu)
