The well-known American newspaper "Washington Post" has dedicated an opinion piece to what is happening with Diella in Albania. According to it, the appointment of a minister with "AI" is a trick that Prime Minister Rama is using.
"The Albanian constitution requires that cabinet members be human beings; regardless of the role AI plays in the allocation of government resources, humans will still have to determine the government's budget and priorities," the article says, which then recalls the risks of cyberattacks.
“The Albanian government has struggled with technology in the past. In 2022, Albania’s government services were paralyzed for weeks by a massive Iranian cyberattack that Rama compared to a bombing campaign. Would a cyberattack that “kills” a minister in his government prompt Rama to invoke NATO’s mutual defense provision?” – writes the Washington Post.
FULL WRITING
“Go ahead, DOGE.” President Donald Trump famously created a White House agency that uses technology to improve governance. Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama has outdone Trump by appointing an AI robot to his cabinet.
Rama announced this month that “Diella,” which means “Sun” in Albanian, would join his government as a minister. Diella already appears to greet visitors on the government’s e-Albania website. Her new job: overseeing public procurement.
She won’t need to be quite so incorruptible to overcome the current system.
Last year, Albania scored 42 out of 100 on Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index, which measures the prevalence of bribery, nepotism and other forms of corruption. (Denmark topped the list with 90 points; the United States got 65.) Rama says AI can help award public tenders more fairly.
Rama, a 1.88-meter-tall populist, has been in power since 2013. He has pushed his country toward European Union membership while facing concerns about corruption and democratic backwardness.
Of course, naming Diella as a “minister” is a trick. Albania’s constitution requires that cabinet members be human beings; regardless of the role AI plays in allocating government resources, humans will still have to determine the government’s budget and priorities.
The Albanian government has struggled with technology in the past. In 2022, Albania’s government services were paralyzed for weeks by a massive Iranian cyberattack that Rama compared to a bombing campaign. Would a cyberattack that “kills” a minister in his government prompt Rama to invoke NATO’s mutual defense clause?
But turning to new technology to address corruption, even if only symbolically, is a useful incentive. Rather than waiting for the arrival of superhuman “artificial general intelligence,” governments around the world could look for ways to improve governance with artificial intelligence as it exists today.
In the United States, the government has lagged behind private industry in adopting AI. About 150 bills on the topic were considered in state capitals last year, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. But it’s not moving fast enough. As The Post has reported, China is far outpacing every country in the West in implementing artificial intelligence — in hospitals, factories and government offices.
It's early days in the age of artificial intelligence. But in a world of risk-averse government bureaucracies, Albania deserves praise for trying something new.
