Google's AI Chatbot Blocked Across the European Union

According to Insider, plans to deploy Bard, Google's AI chatbot, across the European Union (EU) have been blocked after the Irish Data Protection Commission, Google's main data regulator in the region, expressed privacy concerns.

The Commission said on June 13 that the privacy protections of the general AI tool developed by Google were not sufficient to support its launch in the EU under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

According to Ireland’s Deputy Data Protection Commissioner Graham Doyle, Google informed the Commission of its plans to launch Bard in the EU this week. However, the regulator has yet to receive a detailed explanation or access to a data protection impact assessment or any other supporting documentation demonstrating that Bard complies with EU data protection law.

A Google spokesperson told Insider that the company has been in contact with the Data Protection Commission in recent weeks and shared relevant documentation, but did not explain the specific reasons for the pause in plans, or how long it might take for Bard to launch in Europe.

"In May, we said we wanted to make Bard more widely available, including in the European Union, and we would do so responsibly, after consulting with experts, regulators, and policymakers," a Google spokesperson told Insider. "As part of that process, we spoke with privacy regulators to address their concerns and listen to their feedback."

Bard, which Google launched in March, is rolling out gradually. The company says the AI ​​conversational tool is now available in more than 180 countries and territories.

The Irish Data Protection Commission is responsible for the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in the EU. The GDPR, a set of data protection rules, gives individuals more control over how their data is used and transferred by businesses within EU member states.

Google's decision to halt the Bark launch highlights the race among companies to launch general AI products and lawmakers trying to figure out how to regulate such technology.

OpenAI, the company behind the ChatGPT app, has also run into trouble with EU regulators in recent weeks.

The company’s CEO, Sam Altman, said in May that OpenAI could leave the EU if it became too difficult to comply with proposed AI laws that could force general AI companies to disclose the data used to train their large language models. However, Mr. Altman later clarified that OpenAI has no current plans to leave Europe.

According to Tin Tuc Newspaper