Why AI Needs More Than a Green Light: How "Smart Brakes" Can Win the Race
- Bucharest Tech Week
- 2 days ago
- 4 min read
The story of technology is often told as a race ⎯ the faster you go, the more you win. But history shows that some of the worst accidents, in engineering and in society, happen not because innovators were too slow, but because they couldn’t stop in time. In the age of artificial intelligence, where models can scale globally in hours, the ability to brake ⎯ quickly, intelligently, and without losing control - may matter more than raw acceleration.
Lessons from Automotive Safety
Automotive safety offers a telling parallel. Since the introduction of Automated Emergency Braking (AEB) in passenger vehicles, rear-end crashes have dropped by more than half in certain models (Partnership for Analytics Research in Traffic Safety, 2025). The key to AEB’s success is not speed, but foresight: sensors and algorithms detect danger seconds before a human could react, cutting fatal crash rates dramatically. In many ways, AI governance needs the same principle ⎯ systems that anticipate, rather than merely respond to threats.
This is the essence of what the Global AI Governance & Legal Strategist, Luana Lo Piccolo described at Future Summit AI 2025, when she warned that “without the brake, speed becomes recklessness”.
She compared AI’s current momentum to Formula One racing: even the fastest cars can’t compete without precision braking systems, safety checks, and track rules. Governance, in her view, isn’t an innovation killer ⎯ it’s what keeps the race winnable.
Europe’s Regulatory Guardrails
In Europe, the new Artificial Intelligence Act is shaping up as the most ambitious braking system yet for emerging technology. Its phased rollout began in February 2025, with outright bans on certain high-risk applications, and will culminate in 2026 with strict obligations for general-purpose AI. By mid-2025, the European Commission had already issued compliance guidance for models posing “systemic risk,” requiring risk assessments, transparency reports, and audit-ready documentation. These aren’t just legal hurdles ⎯ they are, in effect, guardrails designed to preserve public trust while keeping innovation on track (European Commission, Reuters, 2025).
China’s Bold Enforcement Moves
Other parts of the world are moving in parallel. At the 2025 World AI Conference in Shanghai, China unveiled its Global AI Governance Action Plan, doubling down on the idea that safety and competitiveness must evolve together. The country has already mandated that all AI-generated content be labelled starting September 1, 2025 ⎯ a move aimed at combating misinformation at scale (Wired, Loeb & Loeb, 2025). According to China’s official news agency Xinhua, regulators have dealt with over 3,500 non-compliant AI products since April 2025, removing them from the market as part of a broader push to enforce new safety rules (Xinhua, 2025).
Experts are increasingly advocating for adaptive governance ⎯ flexible regulatory models designed to evolve alongside the rapid advances of artificial intelligence. As outlined in Adaptive Governance for Generative AI: A New Approach (SciSimple, 2025), this approach allows oversight mechanisms to adjust in real time to new capabilities and risks, avoiding the obsolescence that can plague static regulations. To illustrate the concept, think of Brembo’s Sensify braking system, which uses AI to apply different pressure to each wheel depending on road conditions, improving safety and control (AI Business, 2025).
Luana made the same point in her own way, reminding the audience that simply following the law isn’t enough. “Legal compliance is not the ceiling. It’s just the base. The ceiling is trust, longevity, sustainable and meaningful innovation” .
In other words, the real goal isn’t just to pass the safety check ⎯ it’s to build AI that people believe in, that lasts, and that keeps delivering value long after the hype fades.
And maybe that’s the question we should all be asking: if we had to hit the brakes tomorrow, would our AI still be worth the race?
Wrapping up
In business, moving fast can win you market share ⎯ but moving smart is what keeps you there. For AI, “smart brakes” like clear governance, adaptive frameworks, and built-in safeguards aren’t just compliance tools; they’re strategic assets. They protect your brand, preserve trust, and make innovation sustainable rather than short-lived.
The companies that thrive won’t be the ones pushing AI to its limits without a plan, but the ones that know when, how to slow down, reassess, and adapt. That’s how you avoid costly mistakes, regulatory setbacks, and reputational damage.
So ask yourself: if your AI project had to pause tomorrow for a compliance review or a public trust check, would it pass without hesitation ⎯ or would it stall your entire business?
Sources:
AI Business. (2025). Brembo's Sensify braking system uses AI to apply different pressure to each wheel depending on road conditions. AI Business.
European Commission & Reuters. (2025). Compliance guidance for general-purpose AI models posing systemic risk under the EU Artificial Intelligence Act. European Commission.
Loeb & Loeb & Wired. (2025). China mandates labelling of all AI-generated content starting September 1, 2025. Wired; Loeb & Loeb.
Partnership for Analytics Research in Traffic Safety. (2025). Impact of Automated Emergency Braking (AEB) on rear-end crash reduction. PARTS.
SciSimple. (2025). Adaptive governance for generative AI: A new approach. SciSimple.
Xinhua. (2025). Chinese regulators remove over 3,500 non-compliant AI products from the market since April 2025. Xinhua News Agency.
Future Summit: AI 2025 - Luana Lo Piccolo, Global AI Governance & Legal Strategist, Tech & AI Influencer, Keynote Speaker. Conference presentation and interview footage.