{"slug": "the-eu-ai-act-started-applying-to-your-chatbot-two-days-ago", "title": "The EU AI Act started applying to your chatbot two days ago", "summary": "Legalithm, an open-source MCP server, now helps developers comply with the EU AI Act's transparency duties, which took effect on 2 August 2026. The tool classifies AI features by risk tier, cites the relevant articles, and runs fully offline for core functions, with optional hosted services for compliance records. It is designed to be used in coding assistants like Claude Code, Cursor, and Codex.", "body_md": "Article 50 of the EU AI Act (Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, as amended by Regulation (EU) 2026/1744) started applying on **2 August 2026**. Not \"is coming\". Applied. If you ship a chatbot, or generate text, images, audio or video for EU users, the transparency duties are live now.\n\nTwo more dates worth putting in your calendar:\n\nThe text is around 100 pages, and most of us either ignore it or eventually pay a lawyer. I wanted a third option that runs where I work.\n\nLegalithm is an MCP server, so it works in Claude Code, Cursor and Codex:\n\n```\nclaude plugin marketplace add legalithm-org/legalithm\nclaude plugin install legalithm@legalithm\n```\n\nThen ask your agent \"does the EU AI Act apply to this feature, and what tier?\". It calls `classify`\n\nand answers with the Article cited, rather than recalling the regulation from training data, which is exactly where these answers go wrong.\n\nFour tools: `classify`\n\n, `explain_obligation`\n\n, `generate_disclosure`\n\n(Article 50 text, EN or DE), and `check_record`\n\n. The first three run fully offline. The rule corpus is bundled with the server, so there is no API key and no source code, prompt or result leaves your machine.\n\nReal output for a CV screening feature, as the provider:\n\n```\n{\n  \"risk\": \"high\",\n  \"confidence\": \"high\",\n  \"citations\": [{ \"article\": \"6(2)\", \"annex\": \"III\", \"asOf\": \"2026-08-03\", \"appliesFrom\": \"2027-12-02\" }],\n  \"matchedRules\": [\"high_risk_employment\", \"high_risk_domain_selected\"],\n  \"confidenceScore\": 0.72,\n  \"reviewRequired\": false\n}\n```\n\nNote `matchedRules`\n\n, `asOf`\n\nand `confidenceScore`\n\n. You can see which rule fired, how old the corpus is, and how sure the engine was. That is the difference between this and asking a model the same question.\n\n```\nnpm i -g legalithm\nlegalithm mark ./out.png --watermark   # C2PA + pixel watermark\nlegalithm verify ./out.signed.png\n```\n\nNo key. The hero image on the repo is AI-generated and marked with this exact command, so you can download it and verify both layers yourself.\n\n```\nnpx legalithm init    # detects the stack, writes a dated compliance record\nnpx legalithm check   # re-verify in CI, non-zero exit on drift\n```\n\nThese two need a free API key, because unlike everything above they talk to the hosted record service. I would rather say that than let you find out.\n\nIt is a rule engine that cites the Article it matched. A starting point, not legal advice, not a certification, and with no lawyer validation yet. The design choice I am proud of: when it is not confident it sets `reviewRequired`\n\nand defers to a human instead of asserting. A compliance tool that is confidently wrong is worse than none.\n\nFree, open source, and it stays free through the high-risk deadline.\n\n[https://github.com/legalithm-org/legalithm](https://github.com/legalithm-org/legalithm)\n\nTell me where the classification is wrong. That is the most useful feedback I can get.", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-eu-ai-act-started-applying-to-your-chatbot-two-days-ago", "canonical_source": "https://dev.to/pedram_madani/the-eu-ai-act-started-applying-to-your-chatbot-two-days-ago-339i", "published_at": "2026-08-04 12:04:00+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-08-04 12:51:12.544009+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["ai-policy", "ai-tools", "developer-tools", "ai-safety"], "entities": ["Legalithm", "EU AI Act", "Claude Code", "Cursor", "Codex"], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-eu-ai-act-started-applying-to-your-chatbot-two-days-ago", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-eu-ai-act-started-applying-to-your-chatbot-two-days-ago.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-eu-ai-act-started-applying-to-your-chatbot-two-days-ago.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-eu-ai-act-started-applying-to-your-chatbot-two-days-ago.jsonld"}}