The Fines Are Real. The Math Is Simple.

Let's talk numbers, because the EU AI Act's fines are deliberately simple.

Use a banned AI practice, and the fine goes up to 35 million euros or 7 percent of your global turnover, whichever is higher. Break most other rules, and it's up to 15 million or 3 percent. Give regulators bad information, and it's up to 7.5 million or 1.5 percent.

The percentage is the clever part. A flat fine would be pocket change for a giant and a death sentence for a startup. Tying it to turnover means the sting scales with the company. Everyone feels it equally.

You don't need to memorize the numbers. You need to absorb the logic: the bigger you are, the more careful you're expected to be. That's not just regulation. That's how accountability should work everywhere.

I explain frameworks; I don't give legal counsel.