Compatibility of emerging AI regulation with GATS and TBT: the EU Artificial Intelligence Act.

This article examines the compatibility of the European Union's Artificial Intelligence Act (EU AI Act), the first comprehensive legally binding AI-specific regulation, with multilateral trade rules under the World Trade Organization (WTO), focusing on the Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) and the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). It analyzes how the Act's prohibitions on certain AI systems, such as those manipulating vulnerable groups or used for social scoring, may conflict with the EU's WTO obligations by potentially restricting market access and discriminating between like AI-powered goods and services. The paper highlights challenges in applying existing international economic law (IEL) frameworks—such as determining likeness and balancing regulatory autonomy with trade liberalization—to rapidly evolving AI technologies and suggests that while emerging AI regulation poses risks of trade disputes, IEL could also guide the development of AI policies that reconcile legitimate regulatory objectives with WTO commitments. The article concludes that adapting WTO rules or clarifying their application to AI is necessary but politically difficult amid current institutional challenges.