The EU AI Act has been officially published in the EU’s Official Journal, meaning the law will be enforceable in 20 days, or August 1, 2024.

The EU passed one of the most comprehensive pieces of legislation aimed at regulating how AI can and cannot be used. Per the bloc’s rules, once a piece of legislation is published in the Official Journal, it becomes enforceable 20 days later.

First spotted by TechCrunch, the EU AI Act was published in the Official Journal Friday, meaning August 1 is the day it initially goes into effect. As the outlet points out, the legislation has a phased rollout, meaning that some provisions won’t apply until mid-2026, and some even later than that.

Nonetheless, AI firms should take note that August 1 represents a fundamental change in how AI will be governed in the EU.