Consenting to the Use of Emotional Data by AI-Based Services




Vesala, Juha; Riekkinen, Juhana; Rankka, Viivi

Rosa Ballardini, Rob van den Hoven van Genderen, Sari Järvinen

2025

Emotional Data Applications and Regulation of Artificial Intelligence in Society

Law, Governance and Technology Series

69

125

148

978-3-031-80110-5

978-3-031-80111-2

DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-80111-2_8(external)

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-80111-2_8(external)



In data protection law, consent is a broad and flexible legal basis. While the use of emotion-related personal data in various AI-based services could be based on consent, this involves several practical challenges and unresolved legal questions that extend beyond data protection to other areas of law. In this chapter, we discuss to what extent and under which circumstances consent can be relied upon by providers of emotional AI services and applications. First, we analyse the requirements set by EU data protection law regarding consent as a legal basis for processing emotional data, and the issues raised by the rules concerning automated decision-making in the context of emotional AI. Then, we examine the boundaries and additional requirements imposed by EU competition law and the AI Act regarding the use of emotional AI based on data subjects’ consent. Our analysis highlights challenges that arise particularly when emotional AI is used at workplaces or in publicly accessible spaces.



Last updated on 2025-28-01 at 16:55