Apple and Meta have opted not to endorse the European Union’s newly established AI safety agreement, while they continue to handle regulatory challenges presented by EU authorities.
The EU AI Pact is a voluntary framework designed to promote the development of safe and reliable artificial intelligence (AI) systems. More than 100 companies, including major tech players like Amazon, Google, Microsoft, and OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, have supported this initiative. Meanwhile, other significant entities, such as AI company Anthropic and TikTok, have also chosen not to sign.
The AI Pact focuses on three main objectives: increasing awareness of AI risks, pinpointing high-risk AI systems, and implementing governance strategies to guide AI development. The European Union is taking the lead in establishing global legal standards for AI through the recent implementation of the AI Act. This groundbreaking legal framework is the first of its type and aims to oversee companies that develop AI technologies while addressing the potential threats they pose to safety, health, and fundamental rights.
Nevertheless, the refusal of Apple and Meta to sign the pact highlights the ongoing tensions between these companies and EU regulators. Meta, in particular, has encountered legal hurdles this year, including an order from the Irish Data Protection Commission that compelled the tech giant to halt the launch of its AI assistant in Europe. The controversy revolved around Meta’s utilization of personal data to train its AI models for platforms such as Facebook and Instagram.
In light of the AI Act, Meta has stated its intention to fully comply with the new regulations, although it indicated that it is not prepared to join the AI Pact at this moment. A Meta representative remarked, "We appreciate the unified EU regulations and are committed to adhering to the AI Act, but we are open to the possibility of joining the AI Pact in the future." The company also noted that AI could foster innovation and competition in Europe, cautioning that the EU could overlook substantial opportunities if it concentrates solely on risk reduction without also championing the benefits of AI advancements.
On the other hand, Apple has not provided extensive commentary on its decision to abstain from signing the pact, but it is reportedly prioritizing its compliance with the EU’s AI Act. The hesitance from both companies underscores the persistent friction between leading tech corporations and European regulators as they strive to find a balance between the groundbreaking potential of AI and the necessity for stringent safety protocols.
Apple and Meta Investigate AI Partnership, According to WSJ
In a related matter earlier this year, reports from the Wall Street Journal indicated that Apple and Meta were looking into potential collaborations in the AI sector. Meta, the parent company of Facebook, was allegedly in talks to integrate its generative AI model into Apple’s newly launched AI system for iPhones.
Discussions also included AI startups Anthropic and Perplexity, as these companies contemplated bringing their AI innovations to Apple’s emerging platform. Although no agreements were reached, such collaborations could have enabled AI firms to broaden the distribution of their products through Apple’s ecosystem.
The reports suggested that these partnerships might have involved AI companies offering premium subscriptions to their services via Apple Intelligence. While the financial aspects of these prospective deals were not clarified, incorporating third-party AI models into Apple’s ecosystem would have represented a significant advancement in Apple’s overall AI strategy announced earlier in the month. This strategy featured the integration of AI into essential applications like Siri and the introduction of OpenAI’s ChatGPT to Apple devices.