The European Union’s AI Act dominated discussions this week as businesses raced to implement its requirements for high-risk AI systems. New guidance clarified that agentic AI tools making decisions without human oversight will face the strictest compliance checks, including mandatory real-world impact assessments. A German tech firm became the first company fined under the Act for deploying unapproved customer service agents that allegedly discriminated against non-native speakers.

In the United States, the White House unveiled an updated Framework for AI Diffusion emphasizing interagency coordination for AI regulation. A key addition requires federal contractors to implement AI agent monitoring tools by Q3 2026. Separately, Texas passed House Bill 3300 mandating watermarks for all government-facing AI agents, while New York proposed banning AI legal advisors from family courts.

Security concerns took center stage after researchers demonstrated how self-improving AI agents could bypass existing safeguards. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) responded by fast-tracking new agentic AI testing protocols, with draft recommendations expected by June.

Corporate strategies revealed stark approaches to compliance. While Microsoft announced a $200 million EU AI Act readiness fund, startup Anthropic revealed it’s avoiding European markets entirely for certain medical diagnostic agents deemed too high-risk.

Asia saw fragmented developments with Japan launching a AI Agent Safety Mark certification and South Korea mandating insurance coverage for commercial AI agent failures. Analysts note these regional approaches complicate efforts to create global standards for cross-border AI operations.

Legal scholars raised alarms about liability gaps when AI agents interact. A landmark lawsuit in Massachusetts questions whether a company should be liable when its AI sales agent makes unauthorized promises to a competitor’s AI procurement agent.

Looking ahead, the UN AI Advisory Board announced emergency talks about weaponized agentic AI, while Australia revealed plans to regulate AI stock trading agents as financial advisors. With 83 countries now drafting agentic AI laws, businesses face mounting complexity in navigating this patchwork regulatory landscape.