Open Letter Opposing the Delay and Reopening of the AI Act

On 9 July 2025, more than fifty civil society organisations, researchers, and experts, including Politiscope, sent an open letter to the European Commission in response to announcements about postponing implementation and revising the newly adopted Artificial Intelligence Act through the so-called “Digital Simplification Package.”

The letter responds to proposals by certain Member States and industry representatives to temporarily suspend the application of the law in order to “simplify” its implementation. Such a “stop-the-clock” approach would formally postpone regulatory obligations that have already partially entered into force, including requirements for general-purpose AI (GPAI) systems and obligations relating to high-risk systems, whose full application is scheduled for 2026.

By this letter we warn that such a move would call into question the core safeguards provided by the AI Act: transparency for high-risk systems, oversight of AI use in the context of fundamental rights, and obligations with respect to the environment and democratic processes.

Instead of halting implementation, we call on the European Commission to:

• Ensure the timely and consistent implementation of the existing legal framework
• Establish the Advisory Forum within the European Artificial Intelligence Office as a formal channel for civil society participation in oversight
• Ensure transparency, impact assessments, and public consultation in the event of any future amendments to the law

The letter stresses that the simplification of administrative procedures must not become a pretext for deregulation. The legislative framework—resulting from years of negotiation between institutions, industry, and civil society—must remain credible and enforceable. Any simplification that reduces the scope or effectiveness of existing safeguards is not progress, but a departure from the objectives of the law.

Politiscope signs this letter together with organisations such as European Digital Rights (EDRi), Access Now, AlgorithmWatch, Amnesty International, and others.

The full text of the open letter is available here.