Romania's got a new government AI advisor: 'My role is to represent you, like a mirror.'
The Romanian cabinet was introduced to its newest member on Wednesday: what prime minister Nicolae Ciucă described as an «honorary adviser» called Ion (via Politico(opens in new tab)). It's an AI tool developed by Romanian scientists which is designed to sift through data and «quickly and automatically capture the opinions and desires» of citizens, says Ciucă. «We are talking about the first government adviser to use artificial intelligence.»
Ion takes input via speech and text, and outputs through an on-screen face and computerised vocalisations. It's connected to this website(opens in new tab) on which Romanian citizens can submit their complaints and ideas about government services, and can also take input through being tagged on social media and will have terminals at some locations such as schools and in subways. Citizens don't get a direct response from Ion: It will collate and analyse the data it receives, and create reports about what, in the eyes of citizens, the government should be focusing on.
Nicu Sebe, coordinator of the team of researchers behind Ion, said the technology will give Romanians the «possibility to make themselves felt» and the government will «hear this voice, look at this synthesis and also understand the emerging fields that may arise from these interactions with the Romanians.»
The Ion algorithm will supposedly over time learn from the information entered, and its creators believe it can have potential uses in other fields such as education and public information. «The project is thought out in phases, that's how artificial intelligence works,» says government minister Sebastian Burduja. «Ion is in the learning phase, so it is very important for Romanians to convey their thoughts to him,
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