Albania has taken an unprecedented step in the world of public procurement by appointing an AI-powered cabinet minister to oversee the government’s tendering process.
The chatbot, named Diella – meaning “sun” in native Albanian – was developed in partnership with Microsoft and will work to eliminate corruption, which has historically plagued the small Balkan country.
According to Reuters, experts say public procurement is a hub for gangs seeking to launder money from trafficking drugs and weapons, with this reaching the “corridors of power”.
The move was announced at a recent party conference by Prime Minister Edi Rama who stated that shifting responsibility to an AI minister would make Albania a country where public tenders are “100 percent free of corruption”.
“Diella is a member of the cabinet who is not present physically but has been created virtually,” he added.
“Not only will we wipe out every potential influence on public biddings – we will also make the process much faster, much more efficient and totally accountable.”
However, acknowledging the nervousness surrounding AI, he admitted that “almost none of it has been tested in the real world.”
Diella – who on the e-Albania portal appears as a woman dressed in traditional Albanian attire – was first introduced in January as a digital assistant, helping citizens navigate services and access documents through voice commands.
Her promotion to minister means the awarding of tenders will gradually remove decision-making from human counterparts, with Rama calling her “the servant of public procurement”.
While supporters say automating tender evaluation could reduce favouritism, bribery and conflict of interest, detractors have raised concerns about the training of the system, on-going auditing and potential security risks.
Concerns also extend to legal and constitutional grounds, with many asking how a non-human agent can legitimately hold a position in public office, while others question where liability will fall if an error occurs.
The opposition Democratic Party has labelled the initiative “ridiculous” and “unconstitutional”.
Meanwhile, Monash University Professor of Philosophy Robert Sparrow told 9News that AI systems are no better than the people who are designing them.
“So the argument that they will necessarily not be corrupt doesn’t hold water, because if the people programming them are corrupt, then you’ll get corrupt outcomes from the AI decision,” he said.
“Normally, you would expect that a government minister could provide you with the genuine reasons why they’ve made a decision, and these systems won’t be able to do that.
“That’s problematic again, because if the government makes a bad decision, you want to be able to blame them if necessary, you want to be able to put somebody in prison, and the machines themselves are never going to be able to be held to account in that way.”
The move appears to be more symbolic than official, as Albania’s constitution states that government ministers must be mentally competent citizens who are at least 18 years of age.
Closer to home, Australia has also taken a similar step, with the New South Wales Government recently announcing a partnership with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) that will involve the use of artificial intelligence.
Set to play a central role in the partnership – which aims to “stamp out” cartel behaviour – AI will process large volumes of contract documents, submissions, tender data and other relevant information before it is handed over to the ACCC for screening.
Government procurement professionals from across the world will be watching Albania’s experiment closely, but it remains to be seen whether it becomes a true success story or a lesson in what not to do.
