- US tech companies hit with ‘unreasonable’ fines throughout 2025
- Technology regulations are evolving in Europe and the United States
- The Trump administration threatened to retaliate
2025 has proven to be a difficult year for transatlantic relations, with Trump taking office in the United States and a renewed focus on technology regulation in the European Union increasing tensions between two global superpowers.
Changes in how crypto, AI and data protection regulations have been handled in the EU have resulted in numerous fines for big tech companies, with Trump saying Europe has targeted US companies in its antitrust investigations.
However, the United States has not been without turmoil, with growing conflict emerging over whether AI regulation should be handled at the state or federal level in the final weeks of 2025.
US-EU tech battle could continue
Widely considered a global leader in digital regulation, 2025 was the year the EU indicated its intention to reverse and/or simplify certain data protection rules in order to encourage the development of AI.
In line with its intention to become an AI superpower, Europe spent the year imposing heavy fines on American companies like Google, Apple and Microsoft, which did not go unnoticed by Trump.
So in December, the United States threatened to create new fees and market barriers due to what it described as “discriminatory and harassing lawsuits, taxes, fines and directives against U.S. service providers.”
“If the EU and its member states insist on continuing to restrict, limit, and deter the competitiveness of U.S. service providers through discriminatory means, the United States will have no choice but to begin using every tool at its disposal to counter these unreasonable measures,” the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative shared in an X post.
The trade representative went so far as to name specific European companies that have “benefited [the] extensive access to the US market, including Accenture, Capgemini, DHL, Mistral, SAP, Siemens and Spotify.
The United States has imposed travel restrictions on some people from the EU, including former commissioner Thierry Breton, in what was seen as a form of retaliation.
“Our digital rules ensure a safe, fair and level playing field for all businesses, applied fairly and without discrimination,” the Commission wrote.
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