Big tech companies are growing confident in their efforts to challenge EU regulations, believing new backing from the Trump administration will allow them to fight what they see as hostile rules on artificial intelligence and market dominance.
Facebook’s owner Meta has this year led the charge against the EU’s AI Act, according to people familiar with its strategy, with tech lobbyists in the bloc believing they can successfully water down implementation of a law considered the world’s strictest regime over the cutting edge technology.
Silicon Valley is also pushing Brussels to limit enforcement of the Digital Markets Act, which curbs market abuse by major online platforms and can impose large financial fines on the companies, according to people familiar with the matter.
Their cause has been boosted by the new administration. Vice-president JD Vance used his recent trip to Europe to lash out against the EU’s legislation on tech by denouncing the bloc’s “onerous international” rules. He also called for AI regulation that does “not strangle” the rapidly evolving sector.
Lobbyists from other Big Tech companies pointed to the row of tech executives who were front and centre at Donald Trump’s inauguration — including Google chief Sundar Pichai, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Apple chief Tim Cook — as an illustration of the new political reality in Washington.
The EU’s tech chief Henna Virkkunen told the Financial Times that Europe is “fully committed to enforce our rules”, despite US pressure.
But earlier this month, the European Commission withdrew its planned AI Liability Directive, which was designed to make tech companies pay for any harm caused by AI tools or systems, as part of a broader push for deregulation from Brussels.
Virkkunen said the decision was made in order to spur investments in AI because of pressure from US tech companies.
Some European industry officials and lawmakers interpreted the move as a sign that limiting actions against major tech companies could become a bargaining chip in transatlantic negotiations on trade or even Washington’s commitment to European security.
The most immediate battle will focus on the AI code of practice, expected in April, which will outline how companies can implement the rules of its landmark AI Act, such as how they should handle “systemic” risks in artificial intelligence.
Meta has made clear it will not sign up to the voluntary code, with the company’s top lobbyist Joel Kaplan telling a Brussels audience earlier this month that it imposes “unworkable and technically unfeasible requirements.” He also warned that China could win the AI race without a US partnership with Europe over AI.
The social media group, led by Mark Zuckerberg, felt abandoned by the previous Biden administration in its opposition to EU regulation, according to multiple people familiar with the matter. But it now feels that the US administration supports its perspective and can also put more pressure on the bloc.
In September, the company spearheaded an open letter, co-signed by 50 other groups including Sweden’s Ericsson and Spotify, arguing that Europe’s regulatory framework stifles innovation and leaves the continent lagging behind in AI development.
Meta has also said it cannot ship multimodal large language models and its latest AI assistant in the EU due to the bloc’s privacy rules. Other US tech companies such as Google have also increased their criticism of the regulation on AI.
Another key lobbying push from Big Tech is the enforcement of the Digital Markets Act, which is designed to tackle the dominance of so-called digital gatekeepers of the biggest online platforms.
If found guilty of non-compliance, companies face hefty fines that could amount to up to 10 per cent of their global turnover.
Apple, Meta and Google owner Alphabet have all been targeted with probes after the new rules went into effect in 2023. But since Trump’s election victory in November, the European Commission is reassessing its investigations.
Trump has directly attacked EU fines on American companies, calling them a “form of taxation” at the World Economic Forum in Davos last month.
Silicon Valley groups are seeking either a reopening of the DMA or issuing clarifications that hone its scope and give more explicit guidance on how it applies, said one senior figure at a US tech giant.
Weaker enforcement would mean the EU desisting from imposing fines under the regulation, said the person, who added the “Trump effect” meant there was a threat of diplomatic fallout if America’s biggest companies were given sanctions.
Most European leaders seem reluctant to confront the US on tech, which could have broader and security implications, said Giorgos Verdi, a policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations.
He argued this would not only set a bad precedent for the EU’s regulatory approach, “it might even embolden Trump and his tech allies, who would view inaction as a sign of weakness.”
Dozens of tech companies and NGOs have already called on the EU to properly enforce its digital rules and accused Big Tech of “seeking to mobilise the Trump administration” and to “stifle potential competitors.”
The European Commission’s Virkkunen said lobbying would not change its rules, reminding the US companies that “the European Union is one of the biggest markets for Big Tech”.
