Doesn't it, though?

Probably, but it's certainly more complicated. Fiat complained about the added cost of such systems. On the low budget end, this adds a noticeable chunk to the price. Bad for sales in the EU, added complications for export. I could imagine the "premium brands" like such regulations that remove some competition.

The yahoo post in OP is a press release by a Swedish tech company that makes such systems. They're not exactly part of the car industry, but they claim to have lobbied for this.

The manufacturers make money. They have lobbied for it. See that press release: https://finance.yahoo.com/technology/ai/articles/advanced-driver-distraction-warning-systems-071000637.html

Maybe local car manufacturers appreciate a barrier for importing foreign cars.

But maybe it is simply bad law-making. The law requires such a system. It does not require that it works. Many regulations in Europe are like that.

Partly that may be because industry likes it that way. If they were held accountable for deaths caused by their cars, they would have to do open-ended research. They might be held accountable for sneaky maneuvers. They might have to implement unpopular features, which the politicians would not like either cause voters. This way, they just tick boxes on a compliance checklist. It doesn't matter if it works. That's called "legal certainty". Everyone says how important that is.

But I'm sure, in many cases it is simply incompetence. Neither the politicians nor the bureaucrats who write the laws know what they are doing. Clueless people often try to compensate by micromanaging. They don't know the problems that causes. In fairness, the actual experts work for the industry that is being regulated. You can't trust those guys. So there's no reason to believe the experts when they say something is a bad idea. They say that about anything that costs them money.

It was mandatory for new vehicle types since 2024. Now it is mandatory for all new vehicles, including old types.

Do you happen to know of any empirical studies on the effectiveness?

Since July 7, all new vehicles must have an "advanced driver distraction warning" (ADDW) system. That means that there will be a (probably IR) camera constantly monitoring the driver. AI will assess if they are looking at the road and, depending on speed, give a warning if they don't.

https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=PI_COM%3AC%282023%294523

Ahh. But the Ukrainian attack only happened because of a Russian attack, so...

I didn't need that mental image. But since you have installed it in my head, I am honor-bound to upvote.

sigh

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“I'd far rather be happy than right any day."

"And are you?"

"No. That's where it all falls down, of course."

― Douglas Adams, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

Seriously, why are they producing all these great promo shots for him? If they had done that for someone like Bernie Sanders, the US would be in much better shape now.

(explaining the title reference)

[French media] said the investigation was focused on a lack of moderators on Telegram, and that police considered that this situation allowed criminal activity to go on undeterred on the messaging app.

Europe defending its citizens against the tech giants, I'm sure.