Why it matters: The EU AI Act operations clock is ticking. The regulation entered into force on 1 August 2024 and begins applying in waves from February 2025.[1] By August 2026 most high-risk obligations will be live, and the full framework is codified in Regulation (EU) 2024/1689.[2] This briefing translates the legal milestones into operational moves for Chaos teams.
TL;DR
- February 2025 bans risky systems and requires AI literacy plans—start by classifying your use cases.
- August 2025 forces Member States to appoint regulators and publish penalties; expect enforcement muscle soon after.
- August 2026 brings the full high-risk regime online, so build documentation and post-market monitoring now.
What’s on the EU AI Act operations timeline?
Key milestones:
- 1 August 2024: Regulation enters into force—start internal awareness campaigns.[1]
- 2 February 2025: Prohibited AI uses and AI literacy requirements apply (think emotion recognition in workplaces and education).
- 2 August 2025: Member States must designate regulators, publish penalties, and providers of general-purpose models released before this date must plan compliance by 2027.
- 2 August 2026: High-risk obligations apply, including risk management, data governance, technical documentation, and post-market monitoring.
- 2 August 2027: Article 6(1) kicks in, extending obligations to some pre-existing systems.
| Date | Obligation | Chaos play |
|---|---|---|
| Feb 2025 | Stop prohibited systems, launch AI literacy | Update the meeting notes workflow with risk tags |
| Aug 2025 | Designate contacts, prepare penalties, plan GPAI compliance | Map ownership in the executive offsite agenda |
| Aug 2026 | High-risk obligations go live | Link Chaos risk dashboards to the focus scoreboard |
How should teams update their operating model?
The EU AI Act operations approach rewards teams who centralise assurance. Create a three-layer model: Policy (legal sets guardrails), Enablement (ops teams bake guardrails into Chaos templates), and Evidence (product teams capture proof). Article 9 of the regulation requires an iterative risk-management system,[2] so tie every high-risk deployment to a post-market monitoring slot in Chaos.
Where are the traps in EU AI Act operations?
Three hotspots:
- Silent high-risk systems: Many SaaS products embed AI—catalogue them before auditors do.
- Documentation debt: Technical files can’t be retrofitted overnight. Launch a documentation sprint now.
- Cross-border coordination: Member States will interpret enforcement differently, so align messaging with legal counsel in each market.
Mini case story: A Chaos customer in the mobility sector used this EU AI Act operations checklist to pinpoint three high-risk systems. They reassigned owners, moved decisions into the meeting notes workflow, and staged a tabletop exercise. Result: their board signed off on the compliance roadmap within two weeks.
Key takeaways
- The EU AI Act operations window is short—hit February 2025 with a clean inventory and literacy plan.
- Embed compliance rituals into existing Chaos workflows so evidence is generated automatically.
- Coordinate across legal, data, and product now to avoid scrambling when enforcement starts.
Summary
EU AI Act operations are less about panic and more about cadence. With Chaos capturing risk signals and humans reviewing edge cases, you can meet the deadlines without freezing innovation.
Next steps
- Tag all AI use cases by risk level and log them in Chaos within the next sprint.
- Run an executive workshop using the executive offsite agenda to assign accountability.
- Review penalties and sandbox requirements quarterly—capture notes in the Sunday reset check-in.