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Who Does This Apply To and What Does It Mean for You?

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Key Points

  • ✓The law covers 'providers' (companies that build AI systems) and 'deployers' (companies that use AI systems in their operations)
  • ✓Most employees work at deployer companies — organisations that use AI tools built by others
  • ✓What 'dealing with the operation and use of AI systems' means in practice
  • ✓Article 4 of the EU AI Act requires providers and deployers to take measures to support the development of AI literacy — in effect since February 2025
  • ✓This training is one possible measure — the completion record is part of the documentation
  • ✓There is no separate fine range for Article 4 — the Commission considers intervention by an authority more likely where an incident traces back to missing measures
  • ✓Contractors, freelancers, and service providers are also covered, not just full-time employees

Lesson 1.2 — Who Does This Apply To and What Does It Mean for You?

Providers and Deployers

The EU AI Act distinguishes between two types of organisation. Providers are companies that build AI systems — the firms that design, develop, and bring AI products to market. Think of companies like OpenAI, Google, or a specialist vendor that builds an AI-powered recruitment tool. Deployers are companies that use those AI systems in their operations — a bank using an AI credit scoring tool, a retailer using an AI chatbot, or an HR department using AI software to screen job applications.

Most organisations fall into the deployer category. Your company probably did not build the AI tools it uses — it purchased or subscribed to them. That makes your company a deployer, and the EU AI Act applies to deployers just as it applies to the companies that built the tools in the first place.

What the Law Requires

Article 4 of the EU AI Act requires providers and deployers to take measures to support the development of AI literacy among their staff and anyone else dealing with the operation and use of AI systems on their behalf. This obligation has been in effect since February 2025.

In plain terms: if your organisation uses AI tools, it must support the people using those tools in understanding what they are, how they work, and how to use them responsibly. It does not have to guarantee a specific level of AI literacy. This training is one such measure.

There is no separate fine range for Article 4. However, if an incident occurs — for example, an AI system causes harm to a customer or produces a discriminatory outcome — what counts is which measures the organisation has taken to support its people's AI literacy. The Commission considers intervention by an authority more likely where an incident traces back to missing AI literacy measures. The completion record from this course is part of the documentation of those measures.

It Is Not Just Full-Time Employees

The obligation is not limited to permanent staff. Contractors, freelancers, and service providers who operate or use AI systems on your organisation's behalf are also covered. If someone interacts with an AI tool as part of the work they do for your company, they should be supported in building their AI literacy too.

This training is one possible measure by your organisation — and your completion is part of the record that shows it has taken it.

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