What happened
On 29 June 2026, the Council of the European Union gave its final approval to the 'Digital Omnibus on AI' (Omnibus VII) — a targeted package of amendments to Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 (the EU AI Act). The European Parliament had adopted the text on 16 June 2026 following a provisional trilogue agreement on 7 May 2026. Key changes: (1) High-risk standalone AI systems (Annex III) deadline deferred from 2 August 2026 to 2 December 2027; (2) High-risk AI embedded in products (Annex I) deferred from 2 August 2027 to 2 August 2028; (3) A new prohibition added on AI systems generating non-consensual intimate imagery / CSAM, applying from December 2026; (4) Transparency obligations for AI-generated content (watermarking) deadline set to 2 December 2026; (5) Mechanisms introduced to limit duplicative obligations where sector-specific law already covers AI requirements; (6) National AI regulatory sandbox deadline extended to 2 August 2027. The regulation will enter into force three days after publication in the EU Official Journal.
Why it matters
This is the first legislative amendment to the EU AI Act since its adoption in 2024. While it defers key high-risk compliance deadlines — providing meaningful runway for governance build-out — the core risk-based framework, GPAI obligations (in force since August 2025), Article 5 prohibitions, and Article 4 AI literacy obligations (in force since February 2025) are unchanged. Organisations that treated the August 2026 date as their only trigger must now replan compliance roadmaps around December 2027/August 2028 while accelerating transparency and prohibition compliance. The new CSAM/non-consensual imagery prohibition creates an immediate new obligation for AI image generation providers from December 2026.
Action needed
Update AI Act compliance roadmaps: (1) Use extended high-risk deadline (Dec 2027 / Aug 2028) productively — do not pause governance work; (2) Ensure Article 5 prohibitions, Article 4 AI literacy, and GPAI obligations remain on track as unchanged; (3) Prepare for Article 50 transparency obligations from August 2026 and watermarking from December 2026; (4) AI image generation providers: implement non-consensual intimate imagery safeguards before December 2026; (5) Await Official Journal publication for entry-into-force date