Dirk Auer Quoted in Meme Burn on EU AI Regulation and Feature Availability
MemeBurn quoted Dirk Auer, ICLE Director of Competition Policy, in a piece on EU efforts to force Apple and Google to open their AI assistants to third-party access under the Digital Markets Act. Auer warned that the regulatory pressure could produce the opposite of its intended effect, with companies choosing to delay or withhold AI features in Europe rather than navigate compliance requirements.
Read the full piece here.
Google’s search data deadline is January 2027. Android AI access follows in July 2027. Apple has no timeline for bringing Siri AI to EU iPhones — and the EU General Court dismissed all three of Apple’s gatekeeper challenges on July 8, closing its last major appeal route.
Dirk Auer of the International Center for Law & Economics warned that the likely result could be fewer AI features for Europeans. His prediction: Google may delay or degrade Gemini in Europe, just like Apple pulled Siri AI.
That’s the uncomfortable truth Brussels hasn’t answered. Regulation can force a door open, but it can’t force anyone to walk through it. If the companies controlling 5 billion phones decide it’s safer to withhold features than to comply, EU users end up with less advanced AI than everyone else — not because of technology, but because of paperwork.