EU's von der Leyen supports slower AI development, to host talks with frontier labs

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen plans to invite leading artificial intelligence companies to Brussels for talks on slowing the pace of AI development, as concerns grow among tech executives that the most powerful models are advancing faster than they can be effectively controlled.

Speaking at her annual State of the European Union address in Strasbourg, von der Leyen said Europe was prepared to help the AI industry slow the pace of development. She told EU lawmakers that she planned to invite the main frontier AI labs to discuss how regulators could support efforts to “pace the frontier,” according to Politico.

Von der Leyen spoke very bluntly about the risks posed by increasingly capable AI systems, and said that the dangers of self-improving models were becoming “ever more apparent.”

The president also also pointed at warnings from AI industry leaders during her address, saying executives developing the technology believe the push toward self-recursive systems should be slowed, and this is enough reason for regulators to take the concerns seriously.

Tech CEOs sound warnings

Von der Leyen’s comments follow growing concern among some of the industry’s most prominent figures. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei recently called on AI developers to slow the push toward increasingly capable models over safety concerns. xAI’s Elon Musk and OpenAI’s Sam Altman both subsequently backed the call.

However, The AI industry still remains divided over whether development should slow down. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg have both pushed back against calls for a slowdown.

“Every lab has the responsibility and incentive to move at the pace required to train its models safely, and the ability to take its own actions to ensure that happens,” Zuckerberg said. The CEO argued that the threat of liability already gives AI developers enough of an incentive to prevent harmful systems from being released to the general public.

The debate over AI safety also has a political divide across the Atlantic. von der Leyen’s position contrasts with that of U.S. President Donald Trump, who has dismissed concerns over AI safety.

Does Brussels hold any cards?

The EU already has binding AI rules, with its AI Act giving regulators the power to halt models deemed unsafe and allowing independent evaluators to test advanced systems.

Von der Leyen described the AI Act law as “crucial,” and claimed it hands Europe an important role in shaping the global approach to AI.

She also called for an increased level of cross-border cooperation regarding the testing and eveluation of frontier AI models, and mentioned plans to extend the invitation to Canada and the United Kingdom. However, the United States and China were not included in her address, and these nations remain the two leading players in the AI race.

EU’s AI interests

Instead of trying to lead the AI race at the frontier, Europe should focus on capturing the technology’s economic value, von der Leyen said. She identified five priority areas, which included health, transport, agri-food, advanced manufacturing, and defense and space.

The speech also touched on children’s use of social media, with the EU Commission president proposing a ban on social media access for children under 13 and personal accounts for those under 15. Platforms would also be required to show that their services are safe for minors.

Von der Leyen is expected to provide more details on the measures on Thursday.

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