AI politics and regulation in the European Parliament: Ideological divides and policy convergence amid generative AI’s ascent

Abstract

This study examines how European parliamentarians frame artificial intelligence in plenary speech. It also assesses how these frames map onto partisan divisions. Analyzing 666 interventions in the European Parliament (2014–2024), it shows that frames of artificial intelligence follow traditional ideological cleavages, with right-leaning parliamentarians deploying techno-optimistic frames that foreground economic innovation while left-leaning parliamentarians frame the technology through concerns about social risks and employment impacts. Thematic context also shapes framing. When interventions address economic competitiveness, optimistic frames increase significantly across the political spectrum. The findings reveal a cross-partisan consensus in favor of regulating artificial intelligence, regardless of the frames deployed. This suggests that political contestation centers not on the principle of regulatory intervention, but on its modalities and objectives. Emerging technologies are absorbed into existing ideological frameworks while generating zones of strategic convergence when economic and normative considerations align.