The EU AI Act: What It Means for UK Companies

The EU AI Act is now in force, and its reach extends well beyond the borders of the European Union. If your AI systems process data from EU citizens or your outputs are used within the EU, you are likely in scope regardless of where your company is headquartered.

Extraterritorial application

Much like GDPR before it, the AI Act applies to providers and deployers of AI systems regardless of their location, provided the output of those systems is used within the EU. For UK companies with European clients, this creates a dual regulatory environment that must be navigated carefully.

Risk classification

The Act classifies AI systems into risk tiers: unacceptable, high, limited, and minimal. Most enterprise AI in regulated industries falls into the high-risk category, which triggers requirements around data governance, transparency, human oversight, and technical documentation.