--- title: "Von der Leyen's AI envoy pick draws conflict-of-interest fire" url: https://daily.dev/posts/von-der-leyen-s-ai-envoy-pick-draws-conflict-of-interest-fire-dhon1dbv5 source_url: https://thenextweb.com/news/von-der-leyens-ai-envoy-pick-triggers-conflict-of-interest-backlash-weeks-after-siemens-helped-gut-the-ai-act type: article source: "The Next Web" published: 2026-06-05T16:02:05.286Z updated: 2026-06-05T16:02:24.141Z tags: ["ai-regulation"] reading_time: 4 upvotes: 0 comments: 0 language: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Von der Leyen's AI envoy pick draws conflict-of-interest fire **[The Next Web](https://daily.dev/sources/tnw)** · 4 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary The European Commission has appointed Jim Hagemann Snabe, chairman of Siemens' supervisory board, as its special envoy for industrial AI. The move has drawn immediate criticism given that Siemens was among the companies that lobbied hardest to roll back the EU AI Act, which recently resulted in a 16-month delay to high-risk AI obligations and a new industrial AI exemption. Critics, including the Dutch Green MEP who led Parliament's work on the AI Act, argue the appointment hands policy influence to the same industry that successfully weakened the regulation. Snabe will suspend his Google Cloud and C3.ai board memberships for the duration of his unpaid mandate, but critics say suspending seats is not the same as severing ties. The Commission says it conducted a conflict-of-interest assessment but has not published its methodology or findings. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [Europe's biggest tech CEOs form lobby group to von der Leyen](https://daily.dev/posts/europe-s-biggest-tech-ceos-form-lobby-group-to-von-der-leyen-fd84grg92) · The Next Web · 1 upvotes · 0 comments - [Silicon Valley spooks the AI safety advocates](https://daily.dev/posts/silicon-valley-spooks-the-ai-safety-advocates-suop1nvby) · TechCrunch · 0 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#ai-regulation](https://daily.dev/tags/ai-regulation) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/von-der-leyen-s-ai-envoy-pick-draws-conflict-of-interest-fire-dhon1dbv5)