Image Source: EC - Audiovisual Service
Today the European Commission presented its Artificial Intelligence (AI) Continent Action Plan, a comprehensive strategy outlining key actions to make Europe a leading continent in Artificial Intelligence.
APPLiA, representing top European home appliance manufacturers, issued the following statement in reaction.
What EU Manufacturers want:
The home appliance industry supports the EU's ambition for AI leadership but emphasises the need for practical implementation, clear guidelines, and genuine collaboration to ensure the Action Plan effectively empowers the industry to innovate and compete globally while delivering benefits to European consumers.
APPLiA Director General Paolo Falcioni said: “The European home appliance industry supports the EU's ambition to lead in AI, a crucial imperative for our sector's innovation, sustainability, and global competitiveness, directly benefiting European consumers through smarter, more efficient homes.
The Plan's focus on harnessing AI for industrial efficiency directly resonates with the home appliance industry’s goals of optimising production processes, enhancing product quality, and developing innovative smart home solutions that enhance the lives of European consumers. For our industry, AI is not a futuristic concept, but a present-day imperative for maintaining the edge in a rapidly evolving global market.
Artificial intelligence could be the game changer in this context, transforming the way in which we interact with our appliances. The Action Plan's emphasis on boosting AI adoption in strategic EU sectors, including advanced manufacturing - a category in which the home appliance sector is a significant contributor -, is highly relevant here. AI-powered appliances offer a direct pathway to minimising energy consumption, reducing costs, and conserving resources, directly supporting the EU's sustainability goals and meeting the increasing demand for user- and eco-friendly products from European consumers.
The convergence of technological advancements towards smarter, more sustainable appliances and the everyday needs of European consumers is poised to redefine the future of living in Europe, with the home appliance sector at its forefront. Manufacturers are already innovating with AI-driven features and energy-efficient designs to enhance home comfort, improve quality of life, and empower households to contribute to sustainability through their daily choices. This places our industry as a vital link between technological progress and citizen well-being.
However, certain aspects require careful consideration and further clarification to ensure the Action Plan's full potential is realised for our industry. Ambition must be matched by pragmatic implementation.
In this context, regulatory simplification through the AI Act is a critical area. While we support harmonisation, overly burdensome or unclear regulations could inadvertently stifle the very innovation the Action Plan aims to promote.
Ultimately, the success of the EU's AI vision and its benefit to our industry hinges on genuine collaboration. We are committed to working with the Commission and Member States to ensure the Action Plan's implementation is ambitious and pragmatically addresses our specific needs and challenges.”
This website uses cookies that are necessary to its functioning and required to achieve the purposes illustrated in the privacy policy. By accepting this OR scrolling this page OR continuing to browse, you agree to our privacy policy.
