The European Union confirms binding enforcement of the AI Act starting August 2, 2026. All firms deploying high-risk AI systems (medical diagnosis, recruitment algorithms, critical infrastructure control) must complete mandatory third-party audits, full training data traceability and human oversight mechanisms. Regulators will impose penalties of up to €35 million or 7% of worldwide annual revenue for non-compliance. National authorities across France, the Netherlands and Spain have rolled out dedicated AI inspection teams to conduct market surveillance on generative AI platforms and industrial AI robots.