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"This report by General Catalyst lays out a vision for Europe’s AI reinvention in the context of economic value creation — one matched to the strengths and positioning of the European economy, recognising that we cannot compete in every domain and must chart a uniquely European path that allows for strategic autonomy."

"Dear President von der Leyen, Dear Executive Vice-Presidents Virkkunen and Séjourné, Dear Commissioner Dombrovskis,Europe has long distinguished itself by its ability to strike a careful balance between regulation and innovation. This approach is widely recognised around the world as a cornerstone of the "European model." It is particularly important in the context of artificial intelligence (AI), whose impact, as a transformative technology, reaches far beyond the tech sector. Like the industrial revolutions brought about by steam power or the Internet, AI will redefine entire economic domains – from energy and manufacturing to life sciences and defense. At a time of unprecedented technological, economic, and geopolitical change, Europe’s ability to lead in AI innovation and adoption will be critical to meet the competitiveness and sovereignty challenges so clearly identified by Mario Draghi – especially in our most established and strategic industries.Unfortunately, this balance is currently being disrupted by unclear, overlapping and increasingly complex EU regulations. This puts Europe’s AI ambitions at risk, as it jeopardises not only the development of European champions, but also the ability of all industries to deploy AI at the scale required by global competition.This is why we – leaders of European companies from multiple sectors and countries, collectively employing hundreds of thousands across the continent – feel compelled to speak out.Europe has important advantages: a strong industrial base, abundance of talent, world-class research, a culture of openness and collaboration and regulatory guardrails. We welcome the Commission’s AI Continent Action Plan and your stated commitment to regulatory simplification.But ambition must now translate into action. The upcoming digital omnibus package and the digital fitness check must reflect a decisive pivot toward a more proportionate, innovation-friendly regulatory approach. These simplification efforts should benefit SMEs, start-ups, scale-ups and large established companies alike, who will all contribute to driving innovation if they can take advantage of clear and predictable rules.In this context, we welcome recent discussions considering the need to postpone the enforcement of the AI Act as relevant guidelines and standards continue to be developed, and as various industries work together to find solutions that work for everyone. To address the uncertainty this situation is creating, we urge the Commission to propose a two-year “clock-stop” on the AI Act before key obligations enter into force, in order to allow both for reasonable implementation by companies, and for further simplification of the new rules.This should apply both to obligations on e.g. high-risk AI systems, due to take effect as of August 2026, and to obligations for general-purpose AI models (GPAI), due to enter into force as of August 2025 while the corresponding and much anticipated Code of Practice has yet to be released.This postponement, coupled with a commitment to prioritise regulatory quality over speed, would send innovators and investors around the world a strong signal that Europe is serious about its simplification and competitiveness agenda. In the context of the broader review of EU digital rules you have announced, it would also create the room needed to develop an innovation-friendly implementation strategy and identify pragmatic avenues for regulatory simplification, covering both GPAI models and high-risk AI systems as well as broader digital regulations. We have developed detailed proposals and are ready to work hand in hand with the Commission.As representatives of European companies deeply committed to the European project and to the development of trustworthy, human-centric AI – which must, of course, be subject to simplified and practical regulation – we are convinced that Europe has a unique opportunity to lead in the global AI economy. That opportunity will only be realised if we act now and with determination and collaboration at its core.Yours sincerely,Ingo Uytdehaage, Adyen NV Guillaume Faury, Airbus Jean-Charles Samuelian-Werve, Alan Michael Pieper, Artemis Holding AG Jan Pie, ASD (Aerospace & Defence Industries Assoc. of Europe) Christophe Fouquet, ASML Adil Bouhdadi, Autone Thomas Buberl, Axa Eric Demuth, Bitpanda Robin Rombach, Black Forest Labs Jean-Laurent Bonnafé, BNP Paribas Michał Borkowski, Brainly Pierre Salvy, Cambrium Alexandre Bompard, Carrefour Bastian Nominacher, Celonis Nikolas Bullwinkel, Circus SE Jeroen van Glabbeek, CM.com N.V. Stef van Grieken, Cradle Bernard Charles, Dassault Systèmes Lucien Burm, Dutch Startup Association Mati Staniszewski, ElevenLabs Dr. Julian Senoner, EthonAI Dr. Jeannette zu Fürstenberg, EU AI Champions Daniel Abbou, European AI Forum Daniel Krauss, Flix Joaquín Cuenca Abela, Freepik Robert Kilian, German AI Association Verena Pausder, German Startup Association Antoine Rostand, Kayrros Lennard Schmidt, Langdock Pierre-Damien Vaujour, Loft Orbital Prof. Dr. Niko Mohr, Loh Group Grazia Vittadini, Lufthansa Ola Källenius, Mercedes-Benz Philippe Corrot, Mirakl Arthur Mensch, Mistral Christian Gisy, OLX Group Thomas Clozel, Owkin Malte Kosub, Parloa Tarik Benabdallah, Pelico Hanno Renner, Personio Roy Jakobs, Philips Matthieu Rouif, Photoroom Dr. Daniel Gebler, Picnic Eleonore Crespo, Pigment Fabricio Bloisi, Prosus Maurice Lévy, Publicis Clemens Maier, Ravensburger Joel Hellermark, Sana Labs Dr. Christian Bruch, Siemens Energy Taavi Madiberk, Skeleton Technologies Robert Goebel, Spread AI Ilkka Paananen, Supercell Hans-Peter Gai, Südzucker Henrik Klagges, TNG Technology Consulting GmbH Harold Goddijn, TomTom Patrick Pouyanné, TotalEnergies Ralph Dommermuth, United Internet"