Meta has announced that it will not launch its upcoming multimodal AI model in the European Union due to regulatory concerns.
Meta's decision comes on the heels of a similar move by Apple to exclude the EU from its Apple Intelligence rollout, signaling a growing reluctance by large tech companies to deploy advanced AI technologies in the region.
Meta's latest multimodal AI model can process video, audio, images and text, and was set to be released under an open license. But Meta's decision means European companies will no longer have access to the technology, potentially putting them at a disadvantage in the global AI race.
“We plan to release a multimodal Llama model in the coming months, but due to the unpredictable regulatory environment in Europe, it will not be released in the EU,” a Meta spokesperson said.
A text-only version of Meta's Llama 3 model is expected to launch in the EU.
Meta's announcement comes just days after the EU finalized a compliance deadline for its new AI law: Technology companies operating in the EU will have until August 2026 to comply with rules on certain AI applications, including copyright, transparency, and predictive policing.
The exclusion of these advanced AI models from the EU market creates challenges for companies outside the EU: companies that want to offer products or services that leverage these models will be unable to do so in one of the world's largest economic markets.
Meta plans to integrate multimodal AI models into products such as the Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses, and the company's EU exemption will also apply to future releases of its multimodal AI models.
With more tech giants likely to follow suit, the EU may face the challenge of maintaining its position as an innovation leader while balancing concerns about the societal impact of AI.
(Photo courtesy of engine akyurt)
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