The European Commission has unveiled a new draft law introducing cybersecurity requirements for space infrastructure, aiming to protect ground and orbital systems.
Operators must implement rigorous cyber risk management measures, including supply chain oversight, encryption, access control and incident response systems. A notable provision places direct accountability on company boards, which could be held personally liable for failures to comply.
The proposed law builds on existing EU regulations such as NIS 2 and DORA, with additional tailored obligations for the space domain. Non-EU firms will also fall within scope unless their home jurisdictions are recognised as offering equivalent regulatory protections.
Fines of up to 2% of global revenue are foreseen, with member states and the EU’s space agency EUSPA granted inspection and enforcement powers. Industry stakeholders are encouraged to engage with the legislative process and align existing cybersecurity frameworks with the Act’s provisions.
Would you like to learn more about AI, tech and digital diplomacy? If so, ask our Diplo chatbot!
Comments generated by Grok prompted criticism from policymakers and civil society groups, leading to renewed debate over AI governance and voluntary compliance mechanisms.
The chatbot’s responses, which circulated earlier this week, included highly controversial language and references to historical figures. In response, xAI stated that the content was removed and that technical steps were being taken to prevent similar outputs from appearing in the future.
European policymakers said the incident highlights the importance of responsible AI development. Brando Benifei, an Italian lawmaker who co-led the EU AI Act negotiations, said the event illustrates the systemic risks the new regulation seeks to mitigate.
Christel Schaldemose, a Danish member of the European Parliament and co-lead on the Digital Services Act, echoed those concerns. She emphasised that such incidents underline the need for clear and enforceable obligations for developers of general-purpose AI models.
The European Commission is preparing to release guidance aimed at supporting voluntary compliance with the bloc’s new AI legislation. This code of practice, which has been under development for nine months, is expected to be published this week.
Earlier drafts of the guidance included provisions requiring developers to share information on how they address systemic risks. Reports suggest that some of these provisions may have been weakened or removed in the final version.
A group of five lawmakers expressed concern over what they described as the last-minute removal of key transparency and risk mitigation elements. They argue that strong guidelines are essential for fostering accountability in the deployment of advanced AI models.
The incident also brings renewed attention to the Digital Services Act and its enforcement, as X, the social media platform where Grok operates, is currently under EU investigation for potential violations related to content moderation.
General-purpose AI systems, such as OpenAI’s GPT, Google’s Gemini and xAI’s Grok, will be subject to additional requirements under the EU AI Act beginning 2 August. Obligations include disclosing training data sources, addressing copyright compliance, and mitigating systemic risks.
While these requirements are mandatory, their implementation is expected to be shaped by the Commission’s voluntary code of practice. Industry groups and international stakeholders have voiced concerns over regulatory burdens, while policymakers maintain that safeguards are critical for public trust.
The debate over Grok’s outputs reflects broader challenges in balancing AI innovation with the need for oversight. The EU’s approach, combining binding legislation with voluntary guidance, seeks to offer a measured path forward amid growing public scrutiny of generative AI technologies.
Would you like to learn more about AI, tech and digital diplomacy? If so, ask our Diplo chatbot!
Global investment is increasingly flowing into intangible assets such as software, data, and AI, marking what the UN has described as a ‘fundamental shift’ in how economies develop and compete.
According to a new report from the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), co-authored with the Luiss Business School based in Italy, investment in intellectual property-related assets grew three times faster in 2024 than spending on physical assets like buildings and machinery.
WIPO reported that total intangible investment reached $7.6 trillion across 27 high- and middle-income economies last year, up from $7.4 trillion in 2023—a real-term growth rate of 3 percent. In contrast, growth in physical asset investment has been more sluggish, hindered by high interest rates and a slow economic recovery.
‘We’re witnessing a fundamental shift in how economies grow and compete,’ said WIPO Director General Daren Tang. ‘While businesses have slowed down investing in factories and equipment during uncertain times, they’re doubling on intangible assets.’
The report highlights software and databases as the fastest-growing categories, expanding by more than 7 percent annually between 2013 and 2022. It attributes much of this trend to the accelerating adoption of AI, which requires significant investment in data infrastructure and training datasets.
WIPO also noted that the United States remains the global leader in absolute intangible investment, spending nearly twice as much as France, Germany, Japan, and the United Kingdom. However, Sweden topped the list regarding investment intensity, with intangible assets representing 16 per cent of its GDP.
The US, France, and Finland followed at 15 percent each, while India ranked ahead of several EU countries and Japan at an intensity of nearly 10 percent.
Despite economic disruptions over the past decade and a half, intangible investments have remained resilient, growing at a compound annual rate of 4 percent since 2008. By contrast, investment in tangible assets rose just 1 percent over the same period.
‘We are only at the beginning of the AI boom,’ said Sacha Wunsch-Vincent, head of WIPO’s economics and data analytics department.
He noted that in addition to driving demand for physical infrastructure like chips and servers, AI is now contributing to sustained investment growth in data and software, cornerstones of the intangible economy.
Would you like to learn more about AI, tech and digital diplomacy? If so, ask our Diplo chatbot!
Dr Cosmas Zavazava of ITU emphasised that the real threat is not AI itself but people being displaced by others who know how to use it. ‘Workers risk losing their jobs, not because of AI, but because someone else knows how to use AI-based tools,’ he warned.
He underscored the importance of including informal workers like artisans and farmers in reskilling initiatives. He noted that 2.6 billion people remain offline while many of the 5.8 billion connected lack meaningful digital capabilities.
Costa Rica’s Vice Minister of Telecommunications, Hubert Vargas Picado shared how the country transformed into a regional tech hub by combining widespread internet access with workforce development. ‘Connectivity alone is insufficient,’ he said, advocating for cross-sectoral training systems and targeted scholarships, especially for rural youth and women.
WSIS+20 spotlights urgent need for global digital skills 6
Similarly, Celeste Drake from the ILO pointed to gendered impacts of automation, revealing that administrative roles held mainly by women are most vulnerable. She insisted that upskilling must go hand-in-hand with policies promoting decent work, inclusive social dialogue, and regional equity.
The EU’s Michele Cervone d’Urso acknowledged the bloc’s shortfall in digital specialists and described Europe’s multipronged response, including digital academies and international talent partnerships.
Georgia’s Ekaterine Imedadze shared the success of embedding media literacy in public education and training local ambassadors to support digital inclusion in villages. Meanwhile, Anna Sophie Herken of GIZ warned of ‘massive talent waste’ in the Global South, where highly educated data workers are confined to low-value roles. Herken called for more equitable participation in the global digital economy and local AI innovation.
Private sector voices echoed the need for systemic change. EY’s Gillian Hinde stressed community co-creation and inclusive learning models, noting that only 22% of women pursue AI-related courses.
She outlined EY’s efforts to support neurodiverse learners and validate informal learning through digital badges. India’s Professor Himanshu Rai added a powerful sense of urgency, declaring, ‘AI is not the future. It’s already passing us by.’ He showcased India’s success in scaling low-cost digital access, training 60 million rural citizens, and adapting platforms to local languages and user needs.
His call for ‘compassionate’ policymaking underscored the moral imperative to act inclusively and decisively.
Speakers across sectors agreed that infrastructure without skills development risks widening the digital divide. Targeted interventions, continuous monitoring, and structural reform were repeatedly highlighted as essential.
The event’s parting thought, offered by Jacek Oko, summed up the transformative mindset required: ‘Let AI teach us about AI.’ The road ahead demands urgency, innovation, and collective action to ensure digital transformation uplifts all, especially the most vulnerable.
Track all key events from the WSIS+20 High-Level Event 2025 on our dedicated page.
Italy’s new anti-piracy system, Piracy Shield, has come under scrutiny from the European Commission over potential breaches of the Digital Services Act.
The tool, launched by the Italian communications regulator AGCOM, allows authorities to block suspicious websites within 30 minutes — a feature praised by sports rights holders for minimising illegal streaming losses.
However, its speed and lack of judicial oversight have raised legal concerns. Critics argue that individuals are denied the right to defend themselves before action.
A recent glitch linked to Google’s CDN disrupted access to platforms like YouTube and Google Drive, deepening public unease.
Another point of contention is Piracy Shield’s governance. SP Tech, a company owned by Lega Serie A, manages the system, which directly benefits from anti-piracy enforcement.
The Computer & Communications Industry Association was prompted to file a complaint, citing a conflict of interest and calling for greater transparency.
While AGCOM Commissioner Massimiliano Capitanio insists the tool places Italy at the forefront of the fight against illegal streaming, growing pressure from digital rights groups and EU regulators suggests a clash between national enforcement and European law.
Would you like to learn more aboutAI, tech and digital diplomacy? If so, ask our Diplo chatbot!
The event, supported by Italy’s National Agency for Cybersecurity, focused on enhancing cooperation among EU member states and fostering a unified cyber community.
Natalia Tkachuk, Secretary of Ukraine’s National Coordination Center for Cybersecurity, highlighted the nation’s challenges and experiences in countering cyber threats amidst ongoing conflict.
She emphasized Ukraine’s role in both receiving and sharing cybersecurity knowledge to strengthen collective European security.
Discussions included the establishment of a joint Center of Competence for Cyber Resilience in Ukraine, aiming to counter Russian cyberattacks, disinformation, and sabotage.
The center will utilize artificial intelligence trained on unique Ukrainian data to enhance response capabilities.
Would you like to learn more about AI, tech and digital diplomacy? If so, ask our Diplo chatbot!
After a formal filing by the Independent Publishers Alliance, Google has faced an antitrust complaint in the European Union over its AI Overviews feature.
The group alleges that Google has been using web content without proper consent to power its AI-generated summaries, causing considerable harm to online publishers.
The complaint claims that publishers have lost traffic, readers and advertising revenue due to these summaries. It also argues that opting out of AI Overviews is not a real choice unless publishers are prepared to vanish entirely from Google’s search results.
AI Overviews were launched over a year ago and now appear at the top of many search queries, summarising information using AI. Although the tool has expanded rapidly, critics argue it drives users away from original publisher websites, especially news outlets.
Google has responded by stating its AI search tools allow users to ask more complex questions and help businesses and creators get discovered. The tech giant also insisted that web traffic patterns are influenced by many factors and warned against conclusions based on limited data.
Would you like to learn more aboutAI, tech and digital diplomacy? If so, ask our Diplo chatbot!
The EU has confirmed it will enforce its originally scheduled AI Act, despite growing calls from American and European tech firms to delay the rollout.
Major companies, including Alphabet, Meta, ASML and Mistral, have urged the European Commission to push back the timeline by several years, citing concerns over compliance costs.
Rejecting the pressure, a Commission spokesperson clarified there would be no pause or grace period. The legislation’s deadlines remain, with general-purpose AI rules taking effect this August and stricter requirements for high-risk systems following August 2026.
The AI Act represents the EU’s effort to regulate AI across various sectors, aiming to balance innovation and public safety. While tech giants argue that the rules are too demanding, the EU insists legal certainty is vital and the framework must move forward as planned.
The Commission intends to simplify the process later in the year, such as easing reporting demands for smaller businesses. Yet the core structure and deadlines of the AI Act will not be altered.
Would you like to learn more aboutAI, tech and digital diplomacy? If so, ask our Diplo chatbot!
The European Commission’s latest plan to strengthen hospital cybersecurity has drawn attention from regional authorities across the EU, who say they were excluded from key decisions.
Their absence, they argue, could weaken the strategy’s overall effectiveness.
As those directly managing hospitals and public health, they warn that top-down decisions may overlook urgent local challenges and lead to poorly matched policies.
The Commission’s plan includes creating a dedicated health cybersecurity centre under the EU Agency for Cybersecurity (ENISA) and setting up an EU-wide threat alert system.
Yet doubts remain over how these goals will be met without extra funding or clear guidance on regional involvement.
The concerns point to the need for a more collaborative approach that values regional knowledge.
Without it, the EU risks designing cybersecurity protections that fail to reflect the realities inside Europe’s hospitals.
Would you like to learn more aboutAI, tech and digital diplomacy? If so, ask our Diplo chatbot!
Coordinated by Europe’s top research and technology organisations—CEA-Leti, Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, imec, and VTT—the initiative offers a shared, multi-hub infrastructure designed to speed up the development and commercialisation of next-generation Edge AI technologies.
Through its platform, European designers will gain access to advanced chip prototyping capabilities and full design support using standard commercial tools.
PREVAIL combines commercial foundry processes with advanced technology modules developed in partner clean rooms. These include embedded non-volatile memories (eNVM), silicon photonics, and 3D integration technologies such as silicon interposers and packaging innovations.
Initial demonstrators, already in development with industry partners, will serve as test cases to ensure compatibility with a broad range of applications and future scalability.
From July 2025, a €20 million EU-funded call under the ‘Low Power Edge AI’ initiative will help selected customers co-finance their access to the platform. Whether supported by EU funds or independently financed, users will be able to design chips using one of four shared platforms.
The consortium has also set up a user interface team to manage technical support and provide access to Process Design Kits and Design Rule Manuals.
Would you like to learn more about AI, tech and digital diplomacy? If so, ask our Diplo chatbot!
