Article 64 – AI Office

WHAT THE ARTICLE IS ABOUT

The EU’s central AI governance institution

Article 64 formally establishes the AI Office within the European Commission and defines its role, mandate and powers. The AI Office is not a standalone agency but a Commission function — giving it direct access to Commission resources and authority while remaining accountable through the Commission’s structures. It became operational in February 2024, before the Act itself entered into force.

WHAT IT SAYS

Oversight of GPAI, support for the Board, enforcement coordination

• The Commission establishes the AI Office to contribute to the implementation, monitoring and supervision of AI systems and general-purpose AI models and AI governance
• The AI Office has specific responsibility for oversight and enforcement of obligations on providers of general-purpose AI models under Chapter V
• It supports the AI Board and its sub-groups by providing secretariat functions, analytical support and facilitating information exchange
• The AI Office develops and maintains guidelines, recommendations and other instruments to support the consistent application of the Act across member states
• It coordinates with national competent authorities on cross-border issues and facilitates joint investigations
• The AI Office manages the EU-level AI regulatory sandbox if one is established
• Its decisions relating to GPAI model providers are subject to review by a dedicated internal review body within the Commission
• The AI Office provides the single information point for businesses and maintains the public-facing information resources required by Article 62

WHO IS AFFECTED

GPAI model providers most directly — and all AI stakeholders indirectly

• Providers of GPAI models — the AI Office is their primary regulatory interlocutor at EU level
• National competent authorities — the AI Office coordinates with them and may lead joint investigations
• Businesses seeking compliance guidance — the AI Office’s information platform is a primary resource
• The AI Board and its sub-groups — the AI Office provides them with secretariat and analytical support
• Research institutions, civil society and standardisation bodies — the AI Office engages with them in developing guidelines and codes of practice

WHAT IT MEANS FOR SMES

The AI Office is your practical compliance resource

• The AI Office’s single information platform and templates are among the most practical outputs of the Act for SMEs — bookmark the AI Office website and check it regularly for new guidance
• If you use GPAI models from providers regulated by the AI Office, its oversight activities should produce safer and more compliant models for you to rely on
• The AI Office’s guidelines and recommendations — while not legally binding in the same way as the Act itself — are the most authoritative interpretation of how requirements should be applied, and authorities will use them in enforcement
• The AI Office has published GPAI guidelines, codes of practice and other implementation tools — check what has been published before building your own compliance approach
• The AI Office email and contact channels are publicly available — for genuine compliance questions that the information platform does not answer, direct contact is possible

Related Articles

• Article 53 — GPAI obligations (the primary framework the AI Office oversees)
• Article 55 — Systemic risk GPAI obligations (enforcement responsibility of the AI Office)
• Article 56 — Codes of practice (the AI Office facilitates their development)
• Article 65 — AI Board (the body the AI Office supports)