Regulatory pressure on the artificial intelligence market in the European Union is reaching a new level. On August 31, the European Commission officially granted ChatGPT the status of a very large online search engine (VLOSE) under the Digital Services Act (DSA). This decision automatically imposes a number of unprecedented obligations on OpenAI, which take effect as early as January 2027.
Notably, on the same day as ChatGPT, Reddit and Roblox received similar status — but as very large online platforms (VLOP). The criterion for such ranking is simple: the service's monthly audience in the EU must exceed 45 million users. However, the figures disclosed by OpenAI itself are far more impressive: from October 2025 to March 2026, ChatGPT's search features in the European Union were used by an average of about 159.1 million people per month. This is more than three times the established threshold, making the VLOSE status not just a formality but an objective necessity.
Now OpenAI bears the full range of DSA requirements for systemic players. The company will be obliged to identify, assess, and mitigate systemic risks related to:
- the dissemination of illegal content;
- the protection of minors;
- the physical and mental well-being of users;
- compliance with fundamental rights;
- the impact on elections and public safety.
The key innovation is the requirement to create an internal function for DSA compliance oversight, as well as to undergo an independent audit at least once a year. OpenAI must provide EU regulators and national supervisory authorities with full access to data. Verified researchers will be able to request information to study systemic risks, and measures to mitigate them may affect ChatGPT's algorithmic and recommendation systems themselves.
The financial consequences for violators are extremely serious: fines for the largest platforms reach 6% of the company's global annual turnover. In addition, the regulator has the right to demand immediate remediation of identified violations. I should note that in August, the European Commission also gained the authority to fine providers of general-purpose AI models for violations of the Artificial Intelligence Act.
My comment: This decision is a clear signal to the entire generative AI market: Europe no longer views chatbots as harmless toys. The VLOSE status for ChatGPT is a precedent that will affect all major players, including Google Gemini and Meta AI. OpenAI will have to invest millions in compliance infrastructure, which will inevitably impact the speed of rolling out new features in the EU. The only question is whether this will become a stimulus for developing safe AI or a brake on innovation in the region.