European artificial intelligence policy as digital single market making

Rapid innovation in digital services relying on artificial intelligence (AI) challenges existing regulations across a wide array of policy fields. The European Union (EU) has pursued a position as global leader on ethical AI regulation in explicit contrast to US laissez-faire and Chinese state surveillance approaches. This article asks how the seemingly heterogeneous approaches of market making and ethical AI are woven together at a deeper level in EU regulation. Combining quantitative analysis of all official EU documents on AI with in-depth reading of key reports, communications, and legislative corpora, we demonstrate that single market integration constitutes a fundamental but overlooked engine and structuring principle of new AI regulation. Under the influence of this principle, removing barriers to competition and the free flow of data, on the one hand, and securing ethical and responsible AI, on the other hand, are seen as compatible and even mutually reinforcing.