European Commission Publishes the General-Purpose AI Code of Practice

The publication comes three weeks before the AI Act's rules on general-purpose AI enter into application on 2 August 2025. The Code is intended to give providers a practical route to meeting those obligations while formal standards are developed.

What the Code covers

The Code is organised in three chapters. The Transparency and Copyright chapters are relevant to all providers of general-purpose AI models. They cover the documentation providers should keep and share with the AI Office and with downstream providers that build on their models, and the policies providers should put in place to respect EU copyright law. The third chapter, on Safety and Security, applies only to the limited number of providers of the most advanced models, those subject to the AI Act's obligations for models with systemic risk.

Why signing matters

Signing is voluntary, but the Commission said that providers who sign and adhere to the Code will be able to demonstrate compliance with the relevant AI Act obligations, with a reduced administrative burden and greater legal certainty than providers who prove compliance in other ways. Before that applies, the Code must be assessed and endorsed by Member States and the Commission.

What happens next

The obligations for general-purpose AI models apply from 2 August 2025. The Commission noted that the AI Office will be able to enforce them one year later for new models and two years later for models already on the market. Providers placing models on the EU market, wherever they are established, now have a short window to decide whether to sign and to align their documentation and copyright policies with the Code.

Sources

• European Commission: General-Purpose AI Code of Practice now available
• European Commission press corner: IP/25/1787
• European Commission: The General-Purpose AI Code of Practice