A new Memorandum of Understanding between Europe’s top standards bodies and the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) signals a critical shift in AI governance. This partnership will integrate fundamental rights directly into the technical standards underpinning the EU AI Act, moving compliance from a legal abstraction to an engineering reality—and closer alignment with human rights.
For organizations developing or deploying AI in Europe, the path to compliance is becoming clearer—and more demanding. The recent agreement between the European Committee for Standardization (CEN), the European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization (CENELEC), and the FRA (a European Union agency) establishes a formal collaboration to ensure that the technical frameworks for AI are built on a foundation of human rights. This move directly addresses a core challenge for innovators: how to translate the legal principles of the EU AI Act into verifiable, evidence-based product features and compliance information.
This collaboration reinforces the principle that trustworthy AI is not just about performance, but about proven respect for human dignity and fairness. As Cinzia Missiroli, Acting Director General of CEN and CENELEC, stated, the goal is to develop AI standards that are “not only technically robust, but also grounded in Europe’s fundamental rights and values.”
The Strategic Importance of AI Standardization and Fundamental Rights
The partnership will focus its efforts on the CEN-CENELEC Joint Technical Committee 21 (JTC 21), the body responsible for developing harmonized standards for the EU AI Act. The FRA will contribute its extensive research and expertise to this committee, providing formal guidance on how to embed fundamental rights considerations into technical specifications. This development is a clear indicator that for companies operating in the EU, a proactive approach to AI standardization and fundamental rights is no longer optional; it is a prerequisite for market access and a cornerstone of sustainable innovation.
Organizations must now consider how their AI systems impact everything from privacy, data protection, and access to information to non-discrimination, freedom of expression, and even freedom to conduct a business. The FRA’s involvement ensures that these considerations—and the practical management of fundamental rights risks—will be woven into the very fabric of AI development and assessment. This aligns with the growing need for structured, auditable processes, such as those outlined in our guidance on Fundamental Rights Impact Assessments (FRIAs).
In practice, this will matter most where high-risk artificial intelligence touches real lives: hiring and HR screening of a job candidate, algorithmic decisions about work and occupation, automated decision-making tied to social assistance, and public-sector uses such as law enforcement and migration—where risks can intersect with criminal proceedings, crime analytics, and even detention in legal migration contexts. It also affects civic life, including sensitive democratic use cases like municipal elections, where the standards must help prevent manipulation or unequal treatment of any person based on origin, religion, political views, or other protected characteristics—especially for young people and people with disabilities.
This MoU transforms the abstract legal requirements of the EU AI Act into concrete technical challenges. The work of JTC 21 will produce the standards against which AI systems will be audited and certified. Sirpa Rautio, Director of the FRA, emphasized this point, noting, “Many risks can be prevented when considering fundamental rights already when developing technology. This will lead to better technology.” This proactive, design-centric approach to rights protection is central to building genuine AI Trust.
Preparing for a New Era of AI Compliance
To meet these emerging requirements, organizations will need robust governance frameworks and effective AI Management Systems. These systems provide the structure necessary to manage risks, document design choices, and produce the evidence required to demonstrate compliance with the new, rights-based technical standards. For a deeper understanding of AI governance, explore our insights on why AI maturity governance matters.
The collaboration between CEN, CENELEC, and the FRA is a significant milestone in the journey toward trustworthy AI in Europe. It provides a clearer roadmap for organizations navigating the complexities of the AI Act and underscores the increasing convergence of technical performance and ethical responsibility—where each new standard becomes a compliance “event” for product teams, auditors, and procurement.
As businesses prepare for the future, understanding this evolving landscape is crucial. The standards developed by JTC 21 will become the benchmark for compliance, influencing:
- Product design and development lifecycles
- Go-to-market strategies
- Public-sector decision-making evaluated by regulators and, ultimately, by the European Parliament.
Staying informed and prepared is the key to turning this regulatory challenge into a competitive advantage. The focus on fundamental rights in AI standardization is a clear signal that the future of AI is not just about what technology can do, but how it does it responsibly. For a deeper understanding of the regulatory landscape, explore our insights on navigating the EU AI Act and our broader resources on AI standards.
