Yet by dressing up deregulation as mere “simplification”, the Commission obscures the profound policy shift it is pursuing. The Innovation ParadoxDismantling legal requirements for ESG standards, due diligence, and democratic scrutiny will not merely harm EU citizens, workers, and the environment. Innovation flourishes, she argues, when the state actively creates and shapes markets, not when it merely retreats to the sidelines. Learning the Wrong LessonsThis deregulatory turn arrives just as the global AI race reaches fever pitch. No European innovation strategy can succeed without long-term credibility, investor confidence, and public trust—all of which the Omnibus packages jeopardise.