--- title: "Albania Appoints an AI as Government Official" description: "In a world first, Albania's prime minister has appointed an AI to a government official position in hopes of rooting out corruption." date: "2025-09-13" modified: "2025-09-13" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/albania-appoints-ai-government-official" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" - "Future Society" tags: - "albania" - "government ai" - "microsoft azure" - "OpenAI" --- # Albania Appoints an AI as Government Official ![In a world first, Albania's prime minister has appointed an AI to a government official position in hopes of rooting out corruption.]() *\Image: e-Albania / Getty / Futurism\* Albania has appointed the world's first-ever AI government official in hopes of rooting out some of the Balkan state's [long-running corruption](). As [*Politico Europe* reports,]() the new AI minister — which should not be confused with a minister of AI, which a few countries already have, including [Canada]() and the [United Arab Emirates]() — has been dubbed "Diella," meaning "sunshine" in Albanian. Announced this week by Edi Rama, Albania's prime minster, Diella — which also serves as the avatar for e-Albania, the country's government services portal — will oversee public procurement, the process by which governments and state-owned companies buy, via taxpayer dollars, everything from office supplies to concrete for roadwork. Decisions about how that money is spent will, as Rama told a Socialist Party assembly in the Albanian capital of Tirana, all go through Diella in a "step-by-step" process that is "100 percent incorruptible, and where every public fund that goes through the tender procedure is 100 percent legible." "This is not science fiction," he said, per *Politico*, "but the duty of Diella." Along with being the nation's public procurer, the AI official will, the prime minister said, also "hire talents here from all over the world," and in doing so somehow drive down the "fear of prejudice and rigidity of the administration." Though it's unclear whether Diella the procurement minister will have the same underpinnings as the e-Albania government services assistant of the same name, [reporting earlier this year]() from *A2*, a *CNN* affiliate in Albania, indicate that the latter was built on tech from from OpenAI and Microsoft. On the government services site, Diella is seen wearing a pink-and-white traditional Albanian dress and headscarf — but as of now, it remains unclear whether the procurement minister version will be depicted wearing something similar. ![Diella, the AI avatar for e-Albania, the country's government service portal. The avatar's message, translated to English, reads: Welcome! I am your assistant for any question you may have about e-Albania. Image via e-Albania/screenshot.]() Though it's purported to root out corruption from [drug traffickers]() and [gangs]() who [take advantage]() of the Albanian government's contracting system, Diella could, if left unsupervised, [easily be exploited]() by any bad actor who knows how — or could just [plain make bad decisions](), as we've seen time and again from AI built by companies including OpenAI. Still, it's a fascinating experiment in [AI integration into government]() — and quite possibly a [sign of things to come elsewhere](). **More on AI in Albania:** [*This Country Wants to Replace Its Corrupt Government With AI*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()