This month, the European Parliament (EP) approved the European Governance Data Act (DGA). The regulation applies to public sector institutions and companies.
“The purpose of the bill is to make public data accessible to companies and citizens to unlock the potential of artificial intelligence. However, the regulation does not create any obligation for public sector bodies to allow the reuse of data — it encourages them to share the data on a voluntary basis, in an anonymized format (including synthetic data) and respecting other laws such as the General Data Protection Regulation or Copyright legislation.”
The Governance Data Act is the first data regulation approved under the EU Data Strategy. One of the goals of the act is to create a foundation for a data economy that is fair and trustworthy for both citizens and businesses.
Lead Member of the European Parliament (MEP) Angelika Niebler commented:
“We are at the beginning of the age of AI, and Europe will require more and more data. This legislation should make it easy and safe to tap into the rich data silos spread all over the EU. The data revolution will not wait for Europe. We need to act now if European digital companies want to have a place among the world’s top digital innovators.”