EU AI Act Omnibus Talks Collapse After 12 Hours—Sectoral Exemptions at Impasse
Twelve Hours, No Deal
EU Council and European Parliament negotiators announced on April 29, 2026, that after 12 hours of talks they failed to reach agreement on the AI Act Omnibus, a package of amendments to the EU's landmark AI Act. A Cypriot official stated it was not possible to reach an agreement with the European Parliament. Negotiations are set to resume in May.
What the Omnibus Was Trying to Do
The AI Omnibus primarily aims to extend AI Act compliance deadlines: from August 2026 to December 2027 for standalone high-risk AI systems, and to August 2028 for high-risk AI embedded in already-regulated products such as medical devices, toys, connected vehicles, and machinery. The sides reached consensus on a ban for non-consensual AI-generated intimate images, but the sectoral exemption question remained unresolved.
The Core Dispute
The impasse was whether high-risk AI systems already governed by existing sectoral regulations should be exempt from additional AI Act requirements. Industry and Parliament backed broad exemptions; the Council opposed them. Despite 12 hours of talks, this question proved intractable.
Business Implications
Without a deal, the August 2, 2026 compliance deadline looks more likely to hold. Companies operating in Europe need to reassess their EU compliance timelines. No new negotiation date has been confirmed. Source: The Next Web
Related Articles
The European Parliament and Council agreed on May 7 to simplify the AI Act, pushing high-risk compliance deadlines to December 2027 and August 2028 while adding a new ban on AI-generated non-consensual intimate imagery.
GEMA says the Munich Regional Court found Suno liable under German and U.S. copyright law for training on, storing, and reproducing GEMA-repertoire songs. The July 31 ruling pushes the AI music licensing fight from lyrics into playable audio.
EU Parliament and Council reached a provisional agreement on the Digital Omnibus regulation on May 7, 2026, extending high-risk AI compliance deadlines by up to 24 months and adding a new prohibition on non-consensual sexual AI content.