(de-news.net) – The Ministry for Digital Affairs has submitted a draft implementation bill to the Federal Cabinet that is intended to give domestic legal effect to the European Union’s regulatory framework on artificial intelligence. The initiative is designed to foster innovation in the field of artificial intelligence while simultaneously ensuring robust protections for sensitive domains such as public security, health care, and the rule of law. To this end, the draft translates the EU legislation adopted in 2024 into binding German law, thereby anchoring European standards within the national legal order. In parallel, ministers are also examining a proposed reform of the Act on Equal Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities, which seeks to strengthen accessibility requirements across federal authorities and other public institutions operating at the national level.
On Wednesday, the Federal Cabinet formally approved the implementing act for the EU’s artificial intelligence regulation. The legislation specifies the national authorities responsible for enforcing and overseeing compliance with the obligations set out in the EU framework. It also provides legal clarification of Germany’s system of media supervision that is institutionally independent from the state, reaffirming the regulatory competencies of the Länder in the areas of press and broadcasting. According to the Chancellery, these provisions are particularly significant for defining supervisory structures that ensure compliance with transparency obligations, including requirements for the labeling of deepfakes and content generated by artificial intelligence in journalistic contexts.
The implementing legislation is to be understood as one component within a broader, coordinated European regulatory architecture for artificial intelligence, as emphasized by Wolfram Weimer, the Federal Government’s Minister of State for Culture and Media. He stressed that the deployment of artificial intelligence entails clear responsibilities for platforms and providers, making it necessary to establish a shared understanding of platform accountability and to enforce it consistently. Recent incidents involving the use of AI-based tools were cited as illustrative of the need for clear regulatory rules and regular risk assessments. Against this background, Weimer signaled his support for ongoing initiatives at the European level aimed at strengthening legal instruments to curb the misuse of deepfakes and enhancing protections against media manipulation, particularly in cases involving digitally facilitated sexualized violence.
