Welcome to the forefront of conversational AI as we explore the fascinating world of AI chatbots in our dedicated blog series. Discover the latest advancements, applications, and strategies that propel the evolution of chatbot technology. From enhancing customer interactions to streamlining business processes, these articles delve into the innovative ways artificial intelligence is shaping the landscape of automated conversational agents. Whether you’re a business owner, developer, or simply intrigued by the future of interactive technology, join us on this journey to unravel the transformative power and endless possibilities of AI chatbots.
It was a cabinet choice that sparked headlines around the world: “Albania’s prime minister appoints an AI-generated ‘minister’ to tackle corruption,” reported the Associated Press in September 2025.
The Washington Post’s headline called it a “mischievous AI stunt”, while other news outlets noted that Rama’s announcement caused outrage among opposition MPs who accused him of trying to gloss over deep-rooted corruption problems.
Named ‘Diella’, the AI minister is a virtual chatbot that had until last September been integrated into e-Albania, the government’s digital services platform.
According to Rama, Diella was to serve as Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, with a specific task: to eliminate corruption from public procurement tenders – a key issue for Albania as it seeks to push forward its EU accession process.
But a year later, the actual role of the bot ‘minister’ role remains unclear.
At the Public Procurement Agency, where the bot’s skills were expected to be tested, work still appears to be at the preparatory stage.
“There is a project to develop an AI-powered procurement system, but it is still in progress,” said Reida Kashta, the Agency’s director, when asked whether it had begun using AI in public procurement.
According to Kashta, the agency has “just completed the drafting of the terms of reference”. This is a document that sets out the technical criteria for launching the tender that will select the company responsible for building the system.
The public procurement system has for years been considered one of the sectors most exposed to corruption in Albania. Investigations by the Special Prosecution Office for organised crime and corruption, SPAK, have uncovered several cases involving schemes to manipulate tenders, in which winners had been predetermined before the procedures were launched. Contracts for the construction of roads, incinerators and other public investments have been subject to investigations over allegations of favouring economic operators and violating competition rules.
The government’s ambition to integrate AI into the sector has been met with scepticism by both opposition politicians and public policy experts, mainly because of the security risks it entails, its lack of human capacity and various legal uncertainties.
Opposition Democratic Party MP Klevis Balliu told BIRN that the use of AI could serve as an assisting tool for the administration, but could not replace the legal responsibility of institutions, nor guarantee the fight against corruption.
According to Balliu, without a clear constitutional and legal basis, the creation of a virtual minister raises questions about who bears responsibility for decision-making, particularly in a sensitive sector such as public procurement.
“Diella does not solve corruption. On the contrary, she raises a fundamental question: who bears responsibility for decisions influenced by a system that has no legally defined status?” Balliu said.
He argued that a virtual system could help increase efficiency and identify irregularities, but “it cannot replace transparency, oversight and human accountability.”
Public policy experts are also concerned about the use of AI in procurement without a comprehensive legal, institutional and technical framework in place.
Alba Brojka, an independent digital policy expert, said artificial intelligence should not be treated as a “magic wand solution” to complex problems such as corruption, but only as a tool to increase efficiency and automate administrative processes.
“Under [UN culture agency] UNESCO’s principles on the ethical use of AI, decision-making ultimately belongs to the expert or human, not the technology,” Brojka said. She sees this particular use of AI as “an excuse for a problem [corruption] that has existed for years”, and that what needs addressing first is the “legal gap and institutional capacity”.
For Aranita Brahaj, head of the Albanian Institute of Science (AIS) the use of AI in procurement cannot be seen as a solution to tendering problems without first consolidating the legal framework and developing a new methodology to monitor the efficiency of such systems.
“Albania still lacks a complete, secondary legal framework and, above all, this process is taking place at a time when public contracting is showing significant problems,” Brahaj said.
Reida Kashta, director of the the Public Procurement Agency. Photo: PPA.
As part of its ambition to introduce digital systems into public policy, the government amended the Public Procurement Law in 2024 to include provisions allowing the use of AI in procurement processes.
Advanced technology systems are intended to be used to help draft requirements at the pre-tender stage, support the dynamic purchasing system and digital auctions, operate the Digital Complaints System, and monitor contract implementation.
Kashta, director of the Public Procurement Agency, said the law does now provide a legal basis for using AI in the procurement process.
But experts believe these legal provisions do not provide a comprehensive framework capable of addressing all the challenges posed by the use of digital technologies. Meanwhile, a government strategy on the use of AI, and a new draft law on AI, which is still under consultation, have yet to be adopted.
“These key horizontal [cross-sector] acts, beyond sector-specific legislation, should already be in force. Likewise, the institutions designated in the draft AI law should have clear powers and the capacity to implement them before we can effectively begin deploying AI in public procurement,” Brojka, the digital policy expert, said.
According to her, this would ensure control mechanisms, independent monitoring, licensing and registration of AI systems. It would be done in line with categories established by law, algorithmic audits, as well as effective mechanisms for reporting violations of rights.
But even the adoption of a new law would not resolve the security concerns surrounding the implementation of AI systems, because according to Brojka, the government’s ability to protect data remains inadequate.
She said the Commissioner for the Right to Information and Protection of Personal Data has a “lack of capacity” to monitor private and public actors or various online platforms. “It would be an even greater challenge to ask the same institution to monitor data involving actors using AI, because that is not realistic,” she added.
Brojka cited “multiple challenges” in applying AI systems to public policy and calls for the deployment of AI to go hand in hand with institutional accountability and transparency. These challenges include the lack of an analysis defining specific problems the technology is expected to solve, the quality of the data, and the Public Procurement Agency’s capacity to understand, train and monitor the models.
She also stresses the need for clear methodologies for responsible use and auditing, emphasising that, regardless of AI assistance, responsibility for final decision-making in procurement must remain with humans.
“All of these are challenges that the PPA still needs to address, and it appears that institutions do not yet fully understand this preparatory cycle. Instead, they seem to be driven by a political narrative that is far from the conditions that need to be met for the responsible use of AI.”.
Brahaj, the head of the Institute of Science, also warns that implementation will take time and require monitoring. Equally important, she says, is how algorithms for evaluation, qualification and risk detection will be applied in tendering, and how prepared businesses are to compete and appeal decisions under conditions where AI is being used.
Internal auditors and Albania’s Supreme Audit Institution, KLSH, as the external auditor, will also need to develop a new methodology.
“Otherwise, this will remain a reform marked by failures, in which Albanian institutions will simply create a set of problems and defects that will serve as a laboratory for others to learn from,” Brahaj concluded.
Opposition MPs erupted in anger during a parliament session in September 2025 when Prime Minister Edi Rama presented a ‘speech’ by AI ‘minister’ Diella.
“I’m not here to replace people, but to help them,” the AI entity – an avatar resembling a woman wearing traditional Albanian dress – ‘said’ in a video that was screened to the legislature.
Opposition Democratic Party MP Gazment Bardhi raged that “the truth is that Edi Rama’s Diella is a propaganda fantasy. Corruption and organised crime are the reality.”
In a separate controversy, the actor who voiced Diella in the bot’s previous existence as a digital assistant on the state’s e-Albania digital services portal, launched a legal case against state institutions because she said her image was used as the face of the public procurements ‘minister’ without proper permission.
Actor Anila Bisha claimed that she only had a contract for her image to be used for the digital assistant, not for the new role. “I have nothing to do with Diella as minister and no one asked me about that,” she said.
Bisha sought an immediate moratorium on the use of her voice and image, which a court rejected. On September 22, the court will start considering her case for a full ban on using her voice and image for Diella.
Follow us
Copyright BIRN 2026 | Powered by WordPress / WPML
To provide the best experiences, we and our partners use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us and our partners to process personal data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site and show (non-) personalized ads. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
Click below to consent to the above or make granular choices. Your choices will be applied to this site only. You can change your settings at any time, including withdrawing your consent, by using the toggles on the Cookie Policy, or by clicking on the manage consent button at the bottom of the screen.