EU Ombudsman opens inquiry into appointment of Siemens chairman as AI envoy

The EU ombudsman has opened an inquiry into the European Commission’s appointment of Siemens chairman Jim Hagemann Snabe as special envoy for industrial AI.

A group of NGOs complained to the EU watchdog about the decision, warning that Snabe’s ongoing role at Siemens “may compromise the envoy’s independence and impartiality.”

That same group — including Transparency International, Corporate Europe Observatory, LobbyControl and the Good Lobby — wrote to the Commission on June 10 with their concerns about the move, but said they received no response.

Snabe will serve in the unpaid role until the end of March 2027 and is expected to produce a report on issues including AI infrastructure, frontier AI technologies and industrial AI adoption.

But the appointment came under fire because of Siemens’ recent role in lobbying to loosen the AI rules now shaping Europe’s industrial strategy.

Siemens was one of the main proponents of exempting products covered by the EU’s machinery rules from the bloc’s flagship AI law — a tweak EU legislators agreed to in the summer and which is now part of the law.

Siemens is also part of European Tech Creators, a new lobbying force in Brussels that also includes SAP, ASML, Mistral, Airbus, Ericsson, Nokia and BMW. The group has met with von der Leyen and plans to seek meetings with the Commission president once a quarter.

The Ombudsman has told the Commission to reply to the concerns raised by the complainants by Sept. 29.

The Commission has defended Snabe’s appointment by saying that he will produce a publicly available report that is “subject to public scrutiny”, and that his advice will be “visible and accessible to all.”

The Commission denied access to a series of documents around Snabe’s appointment — both to European Parliament lawmakers and to POLITICO.