EU officials argue that the planned reforms are intended to streamline digital governance, not weaken fundamental protections.
The European Union is preparing to launch a significant rollback of some of its landmark artificial intelligence and data-protection rules, a shift that has triggered fierce criticism across Europe and the United States. The proposals, expected to be unveiled next week, form part of Brussels’ effort to reduce regulatory burdens on European companies struggling to compete with major US and Chinese tech rivals.
EU officials argue that the planned reforms are intended to streamline digital governance, not weaken fundamental protections. But critics accuse the bloc of prioritising competitiveness over citizens’ privacy and digital rights. Brussels has firmly rejected suggestions that pressure from the US administration played any role in shaping the proposals, despite years of complaints from Washington and American tech giants about stringent EU regulations.
According to draft documents seen by AFP, the European Commission wants to ease access to user data for AI development — a move that rights groups warn could undermine long-standing privacy safeguards. Some of the changes being considered would even eliminate the widely disliked cookie consent banners that currently pop up on most websites.
The proposals, which may be modified before the official announcement on 19 November, include a one-year pause in implementing certain parts of the EU’s AI Act, as well as revisions to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the bloc’s flagship privacy law that set a global benchmark when it took effect in 2018. Arab News reported that these potential revisions have already sparked intense backlash from civil society groups and privacy campaigners.
One draft would narrow the legal definition of personal data and allow companies to process such information to train AI systems based on “legitimate interest.” Rights advocates argue that this would open the door to broader data harvesting, making it easier for US-based tech firms to access Europeans’ personal information. More than 120 organisations signed a letter warning that the changes could represent “the biggest rollback of digital fundamental rights in EU history.”
Max Schrems, one of Europe’s most prominent privacy activists, has also cautioned that the proposals could amount to “a massive downgrading of Europeans’ privacy” if adopted without revision.
The Commission is additionally considering delaying until 2027 the enforcement of several high-risk AI provisions, originally due to take effect next year. The move follows heavy lobbying from European industrial giants such as Airbus, Lufthansa and Mercedes-Benz, who argue that the strict rules could stifle innovation.
Commission President Ursula von der Leyen now faces a difficult political battle, as both the European Parliament and member states must approve the changes. Several political groups, including the socialists and centrists, have already signalled their opposition to any weakening of privacy protections or delays to AI legislation.
EU officials insist the reforms are designed to simplify regulatory frameworks rather than lower standards. However, with calls for digital rule-changes growing louder — including warnings from a major report by former Italian prime minister Mario Draghi — further battles over Europe’s digital future appear inevitable.
