The AI Act is the world's first comprehensive AI regulation. Its real test begins now.
Writing the rules was the easy part. Enforcing them is another matter entirely. The EU AI Office, established to oversee compliance, has 140 staff members. By comparison, the US Securities and Exchange Commission has 5,000 employees to regulate a single sector. The AI Act covers every sector of the economy.
National authorities, which bear primary responsibility for enforcement, are even less prepared. A 2025 survey by the European Digital Rights network found that only 8 of 27 member states had designated their national AI supervisory authority. Of those eight, only three had allocated dedicated funding.
Europe has built a cathedral of regulation on foundations of sand. Without enforcement, the AI Act is just a PDF.