France

Is there a specific enacted legislation regulating AI in your jurisdiction?

Besides the EU AI Act, there is no specific national regulation of AI in France. 

Is there a proposed legislation regulating AI in your jurisdiction?

Besides the EU AI Act, there is no specific national regulation of AI in France. 

Are there any guidelines/ codes of conduct/ recommendations / reports / policies in connection with AI in your jurisdiction?

Yes. There are specific regulations by subject (data protection laws / IP laws) and by sector (health, military, cybersecurity).

Any additional relevant news regarding AI / or anticipated future changes (e.g. white papers, policy statements about AI regulation)?

Is AI specifically addressed in IP laws? Are there any guidelines / soft laws relating to AI? 

The AI and culture mission report was published in 2020 by the "Conseil supérieur de la propriété littéraire et artistique". 

There is a proposed legislation regulating AI through copyright law.

Articles of the French IP Code and Commercial Code, often used in the context of IP infringement in relation to AI:

Proposed law to Identify AI-Generated images on social media on December 2024, a Bill was submitted to the French National Assembly, proposing that social media users be required to explicitly label AI-generated or altered images.

Is AI specifically addressed in data protection laws? Are there any guidelines / soft laws relating to AI?

Who are the competent AI supervisory authorities in your jurisdiction?

However, the French government has proposed a supervisory framework, which must still be adopted by Parliament before becoming final. The proposed model segments responsibilities by sector and/or AI practices, while designating the "Direction générale de la concurrence, de la consommation et de la répression des fraudes" (DGCCRF) as the single point of contact and coordinating authority, responsible of coordinating the work of the sectoral supervisory authorities (CNIL, ARCOM, etc.). 

A non-exhaustive summary of the proposed sectoral supervisory authorities and their respective areas of control is set out below:

Prohibited practices (Article 5 of the AI Act):

  • Subliminal techniques: DGCCRF and "Autorité de régulation de la communication audiovisuelle et numérique" (ARCOM)
  • Social scoring: DGCCRF and "Commission Nationale de l’Informatique et des Libertés" (CNIL)
  • Creation of facial recognition databases through untargeted scraping: CNIL 
  • Emotion recognition systems in the areas of workplace and education: CNIL

High-risk AI systems:

  • AI systems in the administration of justice: "Conseil d’État", "Cour de cassation", "Cour des comptes" and CNIL 
  • AI systems in education and employment: CNIL
  • AI systems for biometrics: CNIL

Transparency obligations (Article 50 of the AI Act):

  • Chatbots and AI-generated content: DGCCRF and ARCOM
  • Emotion recognition systems: CNIL

For the complete framework, the official note and accompanying diagram can be consulted at the following link: https://www.entreprises.gouv.fr/priorites-et-actions/transition-numerique/soutenir-le-developpement-de-lia-au-service-de-0

Finally, pursuant to Article 77 of the AI Act, 3 local authorities in charge of the fundamental rights’ protection relating to high risks AI systems have been designated : the DGCCRF, the CNIL and the "Défenseur des Droits". 

Are there any publicly known enforcement actions in relation to AI?

There has not been yet publicly known enforcement actions in France in relation to AI. 

However, there has been some complaints filed against:

  • OpenAI: Complaints filed with the CNIL, for alleged violations of the GDPR.
  • MistralAI: Complaint filed with the CNIL, for alleged violations of the GDPR.
  • Meta: Sued in France for alleged unauthorized use of copyrighted works to train AI.
  • Deepseek: No complaints in France yet, but the CNIL plans to analyze Deepseek's operations and request explanations on data protection risks.

Are there any other sector specific laws or guideline / soft laws (e.g. finance, healthcare etc.) where AI is specifically addressed?

*Information is accurate up to 15 October 2025