AI literacy under the EU AI Act: what already applies in 2026

What happened

Article 4 of the AI Act entered into application on 2 February 2025. The European Commission updated its AI literacy questions and answers in July 2026 as the wider AI Act enforcement framework came into operation in August 2026.

The legal obligation comes from the Regulation. The Commission FAQ is implementation guidance and explanatory material, not a separate piece of legislation. That distinction matters when describing what is mandatory.

Why it matters

Organisations that provide or deploy AI systems should already be considering the AI literacy of staff and other people dealing with those systems on their behalf. The required level is contextual, so a generic annual awareness slide is not necessarily the right answer for every role.

Who may be affected

The obligation is relevant to providers and deployers of AI systems. For an ordinary business, this can include staff who use approved AI tools, people who procure or configure them, managers who rely on AI-assisted work and teams overseeing higher-impact systems.

What businesses should check

• Which staff groups actually interact with AI systems in their work.
• Whether general training covers the risks and controls relevant to those roles.
• Whether people with higher-impact responsibilities receive deeper, system-specific guidance.
• Whether training and policy evidence is kept and refreshed when systems or rules change.

Practical actions

Map AI-using roles, define a baseline literacy module and add targeted learning where risk or responsibility is greater. Connect training to the organisation's AI policy, approved tools, data restrictions, human oversight requirements and incident route.