EU Commission appoints Siemens chair as AI envoy despite conflict of interest concerns (euobserver.com)

• Jim Hagemann Snabe appointed EU AI envoy; remains Siemens chair
• Snabe holds $4M+ C3.ai stock, recently left Google Cloud and C3.ai advisory boards
• EU Commission accused of deregulation favoring corporate interests

"The European Commission appointed Jim Hagemann Snabe, chair of Siemens, as a special advisor on industrial AI. Snabe will remain at Siemens, which has a significant AI presence and lobbies EU institutions. He holds over $4 million in C3.ai stock and recently left advisory boards of Google Cloud and C3.ai. The appointment comes as the Commission pushes a deregulation agenda; nearly 70% of meetings by the second von der Leyen Commission have been with companies. The Digital Omnibus aims to weaken AI and data protection rules. Siemens has aggressively lobbied to exempt its products from the AI Act."