EU and US Should Partner on AI, G7 Summit Opens Debate

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has called for a strong transatlantic partnership between Europe and the United States on artificial intelligence, using a G7 summit as a platform to launch broader discussions on cooperation in the field. The appeal comes amid rising tensions following moves by U.S. AI company Anthropic to block access to its advanced AI models for non-American users, a development that has highlighted growing concerns in Europe about unequal access to cutting-edge American AI technology. The G7, a forum of the world's seven leading industrialized democracies, has increasingly become a venue for debate on how to govern and share emerging technologies across allied nations. Von der Leyen's push for closer AI collaboration reflects the EU's broader ambition to remain competitive in the global AI race while avoiding technological dependence on a single partner, a concern that has grown as American and Chinese AI firms accelerate development of powerful new systems.