Ireland: New Technology

As the EU AI Act's Article 50 transparency obligations approach their 2 August 2026 enforcement date, organizations face critical requirements to disclose AI interactions, label deepfakes, and mark synthetic content. This session examines the practical implications of these transparency mandates, drawing on the European Commission's recently published Guidelines and Code of Practice to help stakeholders prepare for compliance.

The EU AI Act's transparency obligations take effect from 2 August 2026, requiring organisations across the EU to disclose when and how they use AI in customer-facing tools like chatbots and content generators. With Ireland's new AI Office now established and regulatory scrutiny intensifying, businesses face the challenge of mapping existing AI deployments and embedding appropriate disclosures into their products and services before enforcement begins.

The European Commission has published an Action Plan addressing the dual-edged nature of frontier artificial intelligence models in cybersecurity, outlining how the EU will harness AI's defensive capabilities while protecting against AI-powered cyber threats. Through nine key actions spanning 2026-2027, the plan establishes frameworks for safe AI evaluation, structured access to advanced AI capabilities, and the scaling of European sovereign AI cybersecurity solutions across critical infrastructure sectors.

The Central Bank of Ireland has released its comprehensive Annual Report 2025, detailing achievements across monetary policy, financial stability, and regulatory supervision while outlining strategic priorities for 2026. Key developments include the implementation of the Consumer Protection Code 2025, enhanced operational resilience requirements, and advancing climate risk integration across the financial sector.

The European Commission has published draft guidelines to help businesses determine whether their AI systems fall under the high-risk category of the EU AI Act. These non-binding guidelines interpret key classification concepts and provide practical examples across three main sections: general assessment principles, AI systems embedded in regulated products, and standalone high-risk AI systems. Understanding these guidelines is crucial for providers and deployers seeking to navigate AI compliance requiremen

The Court of Justice of the European Union has ruled on when data controllers can refuse data subject access requests as excessive, even if it's the first request received. This landmark decision examines whether publicly available information about a data subject's intentions can justify refusing access requests, and clarifies the circumstances under which data subjects can claim compensation for GDPR violations.

The provisional agreement was reached following pressure from various stakeholders to agree the final text ahead of the high-risk AI system rules and other provisions of the AI Act coming into force on 2 August 2026.

Dr Barry Scannell and tech entrepreneur Sean Blanchfield explore the transformative shift from AI copilots to autonomous agentic AI systems that are already functioning as digital workers within organisations. The discussion delves into how these AI agents are reviewing contracts, monitoring compliance, managing projects, and writing software, while examining the critical implications for governance, security, data protection, and the future of professional work.

The European Union has reached a political agreement to amend the AI Act, introducing targeted changes aimed at simplifying compliance requirements for businesses while maintaining protective standards.