This country is first in the world to make AI a minister, and its duties are fighting corruption

Albania is making an artificial intelligence-powered digital assistant named Diella its minister, the world's first artificial intelligence system to serve as a government minister, tasked with overseeing public procurement to eliminate corruption. Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama announced the appointment this week, promising the AI minister will make Albania "a country where public tenders are 100% free of corruption.Diella, meaning "sun" in Albanian, will manage all government contract decisions previously handled by human officials, ensuring complete transparency in public spending. The AI minister represents a radical shift from traditional governance, with Rama describing her as "the first cabinet member who isn't physically present, but is virtually created by AI."Diella originally launched in January as an AI-powered virtual assistant on Albania's e-Albania platform, helping citizens obtain government documents and services. Dressed in traditional Albanian attire, she has already processed 36,600 digital documents and provided nearly 1,000 services to users through voice commands and electronic stamps.The AI minister will now assume responsibility for evaluating and awarding all public tenders, with decisions transferred from human government officials in a "step-by-step" process. This represents a major shift in how governments worldwide might leverage artificial intelligence for governance.Public procurement has long been plagued by corruption scandals in Albania, a Balkan nation experts describe as a hub for international money laundering from drug and weapons trafficking. Graft has reportedly reached the highest levels of government, complicating the country's European Union accession goals.Rama aims to lead Albania into the EU by 2030, making anti-corruption efforts crucial for membership eligibility. However, the government provided no details about human oversight mechanisms or safeguards against potential AI manipulation. Public reaction remains mixed, with skeptical Facebook users commenting "Even Diella will be corrupted in Albania" and "Stealing will continue and Diella will be blamed."The parliament is expected to vote on Rama's fourth-term cabinet, including the AI minister, when it convenes Friday. Rama won his fourth consecutive term in May elections and has previously advocated for AI as an anti-corruption tool that eliminates bribes, threats, and conflicts of interest in government decision-making.