Bird & Bird will host an online webinar on Artificial Intelligence liability on May 12 2026, from 16:00 – 17:00. The session is positioned as the second installment in its Artificial Intelligence Disputes Decoded series and will focus on when businesses can be sued for damages arising from Artificial Intelligence products and services, along with ways to assess and manage that exposure.
The discussion will examine liability risks as Artificial Intelligence becomes more deeply embedded in business operations. Topics include product liability, contractual liability, negligence, and algorithmic bias. The session will also consider how liability is allocated across complex supply chains involving Agentic Artificial Intelligence and bots, and who may ultimately be held responsible in disputes involving both business-to-consumer and business-to-business claims.
A central focus will be the EU’s evolving legal framework for Artificial Intelligence. The webinar will review the EU Artificial Intelligence Act as a preventative ex-ante regime with regulatory oversight and enforcement, the proposed Artificial Intelligence Liability Directive as a fault-based model for private rights of action and civil claims, and the Revised Product Liability Directive as an expanded framework that includes artificial intelligence and broader presumptions of product defectiveness. Following the withdrawal of the proposed Artificial Intelligence Liability Directive last year, the session will assess the consequences of that decision and the private rights of action available under the Revised Product Liability Directive.
The program will also address the position under English law. Jonathan Speed is scheduled to examine the UK Jurisdiction Taskforce’s Legal Statement on liability for Artificial Intelligence harms, along with the Law Commission’s ongoing review of UK product liability law and whether it should align with the EU’s Revised Product Liability Directive.
Practical aspects of litigation will also be covered, including the evidence required to bring and defend claims, the types of damages that may be pursued, and recent case law on how courts are approaching Artificial Intelligence liability in practice. The speakers are Ann Henry, Anne-Sophie Lampe, Charles-Henri Caron, and Jonathan Speed. The event is online, and registration is open.
