From autonomous-driving to ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems), to the potential for Artificial Intelligence (AI) to transform the aftermarket, AI is much-discussed as being transformational in the automotive sector; and there are numerous reported examples of AI being used already, for design, validation and performance management, connected with the manufacturing process.
However, automotive businesses developing, supplying and/or using AI tools now, or planning to do so in future, should be aware of emerging legislation that may impose mandatory legal obligations on parties involved in the AI system “life-cycle”.
Within the EU, for example, Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 (the “EU AI Act”) was adopted in March 2024 and entered into force on 1 August 2024. It is a legislative framework relating to the development, placing on the market, putting into service and use of AI systems in the EU, partly with the intention of ensuring the protection of health and safety and “fundamental rights”, such as democracy, the rule of law and environmental protection, as well as supporting the proper functioning of the internal market, including fair and undistorted competition.
The requirements of this legislation intersect with the more-traditional realm of conformity assessment obligations for “physical” products. A key consequence is that many AI systems used in the automotive sector are likely to be treated as “high-risk AI systems” under the EU AI Act by virtue of being safety components of vehicles or parts subject to EU type-approval regimes, or other harmonised legislative frameworks, creating many regulatory obligations on the providers (as well as deployers, importers and distributors) of such systems. Since the EU AI Act provides for significant penalties for infringement, it is important that any company operating in the automotive sector that is using, or plans to use, AI systems or products that include AI systems as components, is aware of its obligations and ensures effective compliance.
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