OpenAI has no plans to leave Europe, CEO Sam Altman said on Friday, reversing a threat made earlier this week to leave the region if it becomes too hard to comply with upcoming laws on artificial intelligence.

"We are excited to continue to operate here and of course have no plans to leave," he said in a tweet.

The EU is working on what could be the first set of rules globally to govern AI and Altman on Wednesday said the current draft of the EU AI Act was "over-regulating."

Altman's threat of quitting Europe had drawn criticism from EU industry chief Thierry Breton and a host of other lawmakers.