Under the EU AI Act, an importer is the entity that first places an AI system from a third country onto the EU market. Their primary role is to act as a gatekeeper by verifying compliance. Article 26 of the Act obligates the importer to ensure that the provider has carried out the necessary conformity assessment procedure and has drawn up the required technical documentation and the EU Declaration of Conformity. This verification is a crucial step before the product can be marketed in the EU, ensuring that non-EU systems meet the same high standards.

A. Provide technical documentation.

This is an obligation of the provider of the AI system, who develops the system and must create this documentation. The importer only verifies its existence.

B. Affix the CE marking.

This is the responsibility of the provider after successfully completing the conformity assessment. The importer's duty is to check that this marking is present.

D. Conduct a data protection impact assessment.

This is an obligation under the GDPR for the deployer (user) of the AI system if it processes personal data in a way that poses a high risk.

1. European Commission

Proposal for a Regulation on a European approach for Artificial Intelligence (consolidated text

Jan. 2024).

Correct Answer (C): Article 26(1) outlines the obligations of importers

stating they shall ensure "the appropriate conformity assessment procedure referred to in Article 43 has been carried out by the provider" and that the provider "has drawn up the EU declaration of conformity in accordance with Article 48."

Incorrect Option (A): Article 16(1)(g) specifies that providers shall "draw up the technical documentation referred to in Article 11."

Incorrect Option (B): Article 16(1)(j) and Article 49 mandate that the provider is responsible for drawing up the EU declaration of conformity and affixing the CE marking.

2. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) (EU) 2016/679.

Incorrect Option (D): Article 35 requires the controller (often the deployer/user of an AI system) to carry out a data protection impact assessment prior to processing that is likely to result in a high risk. This is not an importer's obligation under the AI Act.