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ARTICLE · 30 JUNE 2026

Irish AI Office Loses Market Surveillance Role

William Fry LLP
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Ireland's Regulation of Artificial Intelligence Bill 2026 introduces a significant institutional shift by repositioning the AI Office of Ireland as a coordinator rather than a market surveillance authority.

IrelandStrategy
Barry Scannell
Barry Scannell
Leo Moore
Leo Moore
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The Irish Government’s Regulation of Artificial Intelligence Bill 2026 was published on 17 June 2026.

The Bill makes one notable change to the institutional design set out in the General Scheme published in February: the AI Office of Ireland will now simply coordinate the national regulatory system and act as the single point of contact. It will no longer hold a designation as a market surveillance authority (MSA).

Background to the Bill

The Bill is the operational counterpart to Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, the EU AI Act, which has direct effect across the European Union (EU). Its purpose is to build the national supervisory, investigative and sanctioning machinery that the Regulation presupposes, and to establish the institution at its centre, the AI Office of Ireland. The publication coincides with Ireland’s assumption of the Presidency of the Council of the EU, and the AI Office must be established on or before 1 August 2026 to meet the Regulation’s deadlines.

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