AI law comparison · Data verified 2026-08-22
EU AI Act vs EU Cyber Resilience Act
EU AI Act and EU Cyber Resilience Act are two of the 169 AI and data regulations Aegis Firma tracks. They have different scopes, effective dates, and penalties — and many businesses fall under both. Here is the side-by-side, drawn directly from the regulatory registry.
Find which laws apply to my businessSide by side
Summary of publicly available regulatory text. Verify against current official sources before relying on this for compliance decisions. Not legal advice.
The key difference
EU AI Act takes effect first, so it is usually the more urgent of the two. EU AI Act tracks 10 compliance requirements and EU Cyber Resilience Act tracks 4. They are not interchangeable — meeting one does not discharge the other. The practical question is not which law is “stricter,” but which of them — or both — actually applies to your business.
EU Artificial Intelligence Act
Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 — the world's first comprehensive AI law. Classifies AI systems by risk: prohibited (social scoring, subliminal manipulation), high-risk (Annex III: HR, credit, education, critical infrastructure, law enforcement), limited-risk (transparency obligations for chatbots and deepfakes), minimal-risk (most AI tools). Providers AND deployers have obligations. Extraterritorial: applies when the AI s…
Full EU AI Act requirementsEU Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) — Software & AI Products
The EU Cyber Resilience Act (CRA, Regulation 2024/2847, entered into force December 10, 2024) requires manufacturers and publishers of any software or hardware "product with digital elements" sold or made available in the EU to meet essential cybersecurity requirements. This includes SaaS products, AI applications, connected devices, and any software deployed by EU users. Phase 1 reporting obligations (vulnerability…
Full EU Cyber Resilience Act requirementsCommon questions
Could both EU AI Act and EU Cyber Resilience Act apply to my business?
Yes. EU AI Act and EU Cyber Resilience Act are separate regulations with separate scopes — a business can fall under both at once. EU AI Act covers Applies to: (1) providers placing AI systems on EU market or putting into service, (2) deployers using AI systems within EU, (3) providers/deployers in third co… EU Cyber Resilience Act covers Applies to: manufacturers, importers, and distributors of any 'product with digital elements' (hardware or software whose intended or reasonably foreseeable use… If your operations meet both scopes, you must comply with both. Aegis Firma's free scan checks all 169 tracked regulations against your business profile so you do not have to read each law to find out.
Which has the higher maximum penalty — EU AI Act or EU Cyber Resilience Act?
EU AI Act: €35,000,000 or 7% of global annual turnover (whichever higher) for prohibited AI; €15M or 3% for high-risk violations; €7.5M or 1% for incorrect information to authorities EU Cyber Resilience Act: €15,000,000 or 2.5% of global annual turnover for essential requirement violations Penalty structures differ by regulator and violation type — read each law's full page for the cure periods and per-violation detail.
When does each law take effect?
EU AI Act — effective 2024-08-01, enforcement from 2026-08-02. EU Cyber Resilience Act — effective 2024-12-10, enforcement from 2026-09-11. Dates last verified against official sources on 2026-08-22 and 2026-08-22 respectively.
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