Commercially Connected shorts -14 October 2026

This week we look at:

• Compliance: EU proposes faster standards regime to boost competitiveness
• Privacy & AI: ICO releases statement on its work on data protection compliance in the context of AI – including agentic AI call for evidence
• Consumer: Law Commission proposes product liability overhaul for the digital age
• Tech: Technology, AI and the changing legal landscape of M&A

EU proposes faster standards regime to boost competitiveness

On 6 October 2026 the European Commission proposed a new Standardisation Regulation aimed at accelerating the development of European standards, improving SME participation in the process, increasing transparency and making certain standards referenced in EU legislation freely accessible.

Standards help establish common requirements for product safety, performance and reliability, and provide a means of demonstrating legal compliance. The reforms would introduce clearer deadlines, allow greater use of alternative technical specifications and reduce the average time for developing a standard from around six years to four. The proposal also seeks to strengthen the EU's influence in international standard-setting.

Standards are often the gateway to legal compliance and market access. A faster, more accessible standardisation system could reduce regulatory friction and help businesses bring new products to market more quickly, particularly in fast-moving sectors such as clean tech, cybersecurity and advanced manufacturing, where technological development is outpacing conformity assessment. These proposals will now be considered by the European Parliament and Council of the EU.

Want to know what else has been happening in Europe recently? Check out our EU Legislation Roundup: September 2026

ICO releases statement on its work on data protection compliance in the context of AI – including agentic AI call for evidence

On 8 October 2026, the Information Commission's Office (ICO) released a statement outlining several developments in relation to its work on data protection compliance in the context of AI, including:

• Publication of “Building trust and transparency into generative AI development: our work to create regulatory certainty” report on the ICO’s foundation model supervision programme. The ICO says ten of the largest foundation model developers operating in the UK have made, or committed to make, data protection changes. These include clearer transparency information, stronger mechanisms for individuals to exercise their rights, and tougher assessments of safeguards. The ICO is monitoring progress against these commitments. The report also sets out the ICO's positions on how special category data can be used lawfully, and on whether foundation models themselves may contain personal data. It states that developers processing personal data to train models must identify a lawful basis, provide meaningful transparency, enable people to exercise their rights, and show that safeguards materially reduce risk. Where models contain personal data, or where special category data is involved, the ICO says "the bar is even higher". The ICO makes clear in its report that developers should ensure that their governance frameworks remain sufficiently robust and they’re able to assess and respond to developments in AI technology as they occur

• The launch of a six-week call for evidence on agentic AI, covering: data security; transparency; accountability; automated decision-making; fairness and purpose limitation; and lawfulness of processing.

• Confirmation that the ICO is making ongoing enquiries into recent agentic AI testing incidents, and that the evidence gathered will inform future guidance and the ICO's forthcoming statutory code of practice on AI and automated decision-making. The ICO also noted that the increasing personalisation of consumer-facing AI services, such as popular general-purpose chatbots and chatbots used for role-play and companion purposes, is another one of its priority areas of focus, and it is engaging with the public and organisations to understand concerns and ensure that consumer needs are met in a transparent and privacy-centred way. 

Businesses developing, procuring or deploying AI models or AI agents should consider responding to the call for evidence by 20 November 2026. They should also review their chosen lawful basis (including any reliance on legitimate interests), transparency information, rights-handling processes and safeguard assessments against the ICO's stated expectations. Where AI agents act with limited human oversight, businesses should check how accountability is allocated and evidenced across the AI supply chain.

Stay tuned for more detailed analysis from our specialists.

With thanks to Lizzie Charlton

Law Commission proposes product liability overhaul for the digital age

On 8 October 2026 the Law Commission launched a consultation on major reforms to UK product liability law, proposing to extend the definition of a "product" to include software, AI systems and certain online platform features, while also bringing online marketplaces within the liability regime.

The proposals include clarifying rules on defective products, reviewing when compensation might be available for psychiatric harm claims and easing evidential challenges for claimants in complex technology cases, while retaining key business protections such as the “development risks” defence. The review focuses on updating Part 1 of the Consumer Protection Act 1987 for the digital age and the consultation closes on 14 January 2027.

Businesses developing, supplying or selling digital products, AI solutions and online services could face expanded liability and should monitor the proposed reforms closely, particularly as they may reshape risk allocation, compliance obligations and claims exposure in the digital economy. The Law Commission aims to publish the final recommendations in late 2027.

For more on product liability see: Same Rules; Different Routes: How Europe Is Rewriting Product Liability

Technology, AI and the changing legal landscape of M&A

Technology is changing what businesses buy, how they value opportunities and how deals get done. Our new report, Technology, AI and the changing legal landscape of M&A | Eversheds Sutherland, explores what this means for the future of dealmaking and finds:

• Technology is increasingly a reason to buy, sell or invest in any type of business, not simply a sector category

• Buyers are placing greater value on data; tech, intellectual property (IP), talent, and infrastructure; and future capability

• Outside the tech sector, acquiring tech-savvy businesses is now seen as a hedge against wider market transitions. Yes, AI is a huge factor. But it’s not alone

• Tech also is having a major impact on deal process, particularly the accurate evaluation of opportunities, values and synergies

• Tech’s rising importance to value and volume of deals is triggering renewed focus on legal issues. Regulations around data use and transfer, accuracy of due diligence, post-deal contracts and conditional payments, ownership of IP, proper consideration of future legal status around, for example, copyrighted software and data…. in all these areas and more, the stakes have been raised

Take a look at some of our deeper dive reviews which form part of the report:

Cross-border technology M&A: global opportunity, local legal risk

How data, AI and digital regulation are reshaping M&A risk