BRUSSELS, May 7 — The European Council and the European Parliament on Thursday reached political agreement on a package of amendments to the Artificial Intelligence Act intended to simplify and streamline its implementation, the Council said in a statement.
The legislative package, referred to in Brussels as the “AI omnibus,” covers three areas of change. It extends the list of prohibited AI practices to include so-called “nudifier” applications — systems that generate potentially harmful intimate content from non-intimate inputs — with the prohibition taking effect December 2, 2026.
The agreement postpones the deadline for member states to establish national AI regulatory sandboxes, moving the cut-off to August 2, 2027. The Council said the postponement was intended to give national competent authorities additional implementation time.
The agreement also shortens the grace period for providers to comply with transparency obligations on artificially generated content from six months to three months, with the new deadline set at December 2, 2026.
The omnibus does not amend the core obligations applicable to providers of general-purpose AI models, which entered into force on August 2, 2025 and continue to apply. Penalties applicable specifically to those providers remain postponed until August 2, 2026.
The European Commission separately opened two consultations during the month. On May 8 it sought stakeholder input on draft guidelines for AI transparency obligations. On May 19 it sought feedback on the draft guidelines for classifying high-risk AI systems.
The omnibus must still be formally adopted by both institutions, a step the Council described as a technical follow-up.