This blog post summarizes the key points presented by Cooley lawyers Patrick Van Eecke, Enrique Capdevila and Athina Gaki during the Cooley webinar, “New European Commission: What Data-Driven Tech Companies Need to Know”, part of the CooleyREG Talks (EU) series, “New European Commission, New Economic Regulation for the EU and Beyond”.

1. Who are the commissioner candidates that will shape the European Union tech landscape?

The new European Commission (EC) is preparing to take office. Among the 26 nominees, three key decision-makers will play a pivotal role in shaping the tech regulatory landscape over the next five years:

  1. Henna Virkkunen – A former Member of the European Parliament and former Finnish Minister of Public Administration and Local Government, Virkkunen is set to become Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy. In this role, she will focus on strengthening Europe’s technological autonomy and security.
  1. Michael McGrath – A newcomer to Brussels, McGrath has been nominated as Commissioner-designate for Democracy, Justice and the Rule of Law. With experience as Ireland’s Finance Minister, he will bring a strong emphasis on digital fairness, and his strong connections to the US and UK will enable him to provide valuable insights for cross-border tech regulation.
  1. Teresa Ribera Rodríguez – Proposed as Executive Vice-President and Commissioner-designate for the Clean, Just and Competitive Transition, Ribera Rodríguez will oversee a broad portfolio that includes the EU’s Green Deal. With her legal background and extensive political experience, she will be instrumental in addressing the complex challenges within her portfolio – including shaping competition policy as the EC focuses on fostering competitiveness across sectors, including technology.

2. What can tech companies expect from the new EC in the regulation of use or deployment of AI systems?

The previous EC adopted the AI Act – the first regulatory framework aimed at ensuring the safe and ethical development and deployment of artificial intelligence (AI) across the EU. For the coming years, we can expect more AI-focused legislation – particularly in areas like industrial AI applications, with initiatives like AI Factories. Separately, the proposed AI Liability Directive could resurface as a regulation, setting a stricter framework for noncontractual civil liability for damage caused with the involvement of AI systems.

Moreover, tech companies will need to make sure they keep up with all regulatory developments and guidelines that the AI Office is expected to issue in the coming years, along with implementing and delegated acts and other tools to support effective implementation of the AI Act.

3. What are the most relevant areas of interest for AI companies from a competition law perspective?

The major challenge of the future EC will be striking a balance between regulation and innovation. While the EU remains committed to advancing AI innovation, there will be a stronger focus on ensuring fair competition. This means that, although regulatory measures will become stricter, the EC is likely to introduce initiatives to support AI startups and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Below we lay out the main areas of interest for AI companies from a competition law perspective:

  • Strong state aid control: Funding for AI’s huge needs in infrastructure expansion will draw on private and public purses, and the public contributions would be scrutinized under the EU’s state aid rules. At the same time – and as the EU tries to be at the forefront of developments and sees AI as its chance to get ahead of the US and China in tech – we can expect a new simplified state aid framework that will guide the development of AI.

  • Enforcement actions: The EC is increasingly focused on AI-related competition issues, with recent rulings suggesting that stricter enforcement may be on the horizon. To begin with, EC officials have signaled that the Digital Markets Act (DMA) can be extended to AI-powered services integrated by major platforms, despite not explicitly mentioning AI. Alongside the DMA, general competition laws remain in force, targeting abuses of dominant positions and restrictive agreements, including potential algorithmic collusion.

  • Enforcement initiatives: Currently, the EC is actively monitoring the AI and virtual worlds sectors to ensure that competition is not negatively affected. This entails:

    • Analysing the investments and partnerships between large digital players and generative AI developers, as well as agreements for the preinstallation of generative AI models from an antitrust and a merger control perspective.
    • Preliminary investigations into markets that are crucial for the development of generative AI (cloud, different types of specialized chips).

We can expect that the new EC will continue to this path, and as it gets more information on the markets, that it will issue more specific guidance to companies in the AI space.

  • Global cooperation: Stronger global cooperation will remain high on the agenda of the new EC. Especially in the AI field, given the global nature of the business operations of AI players, the EC is committed to strengthening coordination. The first step was a joint statement published with the US Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission and the UK Competition and Markets Authority. We are expecting more in this space, as the EC is interested in advancing the global dialogue on goals – including reducing barriers to entry in AI development, sustaining the diversity of AI business models and fostering innovation. Perhaps we will see a more homogenous approach from the agencies.

4. Consumer protection: The Digital Fairness Act

One of the most anticipated legislative developments for the next mandate is the Digital Fairness Act (DFA), which will reshape EU consumer protection laws to meet the challenges of the digital age. Building on previous legislation, like the Digital Services Act and the AI Act, the DFA will address emerging issues, such as:

  1. Dark patterns – User interface designs that manipulate consumer decisions
  2. Addictive design – Functionalities that encourage excessive use of services (e.g., gambling-like features in video games)
  3. Personalized targeting – Practices that exploit vulnerable consumers
  4. Social media influencers – Tightening regulations on commercial practices in influencer marketing

The update of the consumer protection legal framework, which is marked as a top priority for the new EC, aims to simplify, harmonize and consolidate the existing EU rules by making it easier for businesses to comply, while offering stronger safeguards for consumers.

Conclusion

The new EC is set to build on the work of its predecessor, with a strong emphasis on balancing innovation and regulation. For tech companies, staying up to date on upcoming regulations – such as the DFA, AI liability rules and the evolving competition landscape – will be crucial.

Stay tuned for more updates on the European digital regulatory landscape.

For a recording of the CooleyREG Talks (EU): New European Commission – What Data-Driven Tech Companies Need to Know webinar, please click here.

Authors

Patrick Van Eecke, Partner, Brussels

Enrique Gallego Capdevila, Special Counsel, Brussels

Athina Gaki, Associate, Brussels

Posted by Patrick Johnson

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