The French technology consultancy Capgemini has been chosen by the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Office of the European Commission to lead a consortium that will provide specialized support in the analysis of cyberthreats and in the assessment of risks associated with advanced AI systems, within the regulatory framework of the European Union’s AI Act (AI Act). This body is integrated into the Directorate-General for Communications Networks, Content and Technologies (CNECT).
This contract falls under the European AI security program and is aimed at studying and reducing the risks of cyberoffensive activity linked to general-purpose AI models (GPAI, for its acronym in English), as the company detailed in a statement released this Tuesday.
Capgemini “will contribute to strengthening Europe’s capacity to assess, monitor, and mitigate the systemic risks of cyberoffensive activity linked to advanced general-purpose AI models”.
Europe needs harmonized assessment frameworks
“As these models rapidly acquire autonomous capabilities and cyber-relevant significance, such as automated detection of vulnerabilities, the generation of ‘exploits’ or the orchestration of large-scale cyberattacks, Europe needs robust, harmonized assessment frameworks that ensure these technologies are deployed safely and responsibly across the EU,” Capgemini said, emphasizing that it makes available its expertise in AI, cybersecurity, and regulatory compliance to support the AI Office in its “fundamental” mission, the development and use of trustworthy AI.
Among the planned tasks are modeling emerging cyberoffensive risks, the creation of assessment tools, the design of technical compliance methodologies, and the execution of technical evaluations upon request from the Office. Capgemini will support this body in detecting systemic risks and in the practical implementation of the obligations that the AI Act imposes on GPAI providers.
Capgemini’s Chief Executive for the South Europe region and member of the executive committee, Andrea Falleni, has stated that, while Europe rolls out the first comprehensive AI security framework at a global scale, this alliance with the European Commission demonstrates “the shared commitment to ensure that AI technologies are developed and deployed responsibly”.
"By combining scientific rigor, operational experience and knowledge in the operationalization of a trusted AI, at Capgemini we are proud to contribute to strengthening Europe's digital resilience", he stressed.
Capgemini leads a specific consortium together with Wavestone and the French public entity Laboratoire National de Métrologie et d'Essais (LNE), integrating complementary capabilities in cybersecurity risk management, operational security, AI evaluation and conformity verification.