Weekly Update: Week of July 7, 2025

Focus on standards and strategies. In Europe, attention turned to implementing the EU’s sweeping AI Act. On July 10, the European Commission published a Code of Practice for generative AI and a Q&A to guide companies ahead of the Act’s phased enforcement. By July 18, the Commission also released detailed guidelines on General-Purpose AI obligations, clarifying how makers of large AI models (like GPT-style systems) can comply. These moves aimed to reassure industry and harmonize interpretation of the AI Act’s requirements. In the UK, officials debated their AI White Paper and an AI Bill (which was reportedly delayed in Parliament). The UK’s ICO (information commissioner) did launch a new AI and Biometrics Strategy this week to address AI use in identity and surveillance. Collectively, these efforts indicate mid-July was about laying groundwork: refining definitions, standards, and roadmaps so that forthcoming AI regulations will be effective and practicable for all stakeholders.