Virtual Hydra: the world's first Albanian AI official "in position"
The world's first digital politician, the Albanian Minister of Public Procurement, Diella, is "pregnant" and is expecting 83 "children" soon. This was announced by Prime Minister Edi Rama. It is understood that the future "children" of the official will serve as assistants to government officials: to report missed meetings, record events taking place in parliament and attend meetings. Some experts believe that this step by the Albanian government is a direct way to endow artificial intelligence with human qualities. Others are sure that Diella is a bot tool that people just find convenient to work with. In what areas artificial intelligence is currently being used and why experts' opinions about the virtual official are divided, see the Izvestia article.
The world's first AI minister is "pregnant"
Albanian AI official Diella is "in a position." This was announced by Prime Minister Edi Rama during the Berlin Global Dialogue conference, where issues of governance and modern technologies were discussed. "For the first time, I can announce that Diella is pregnant and expecting 83 children," he said.
Edi Rama also stated that each child of his "daughter" will be attached to a member of the Albanian parliament and "will become an assistant for him who will attend meetings." In addition, AI assistants will record everything that happens in parliament and inform officials about missed meetings. "For example, if you go for a coffee and forget to return to work, the "child" will tell you about everything that happened in the hall during your absence," the Prime Minister explained.
According to Vox News, Diella's "children" will become a symbol of the near future. They will help the government modernize public administration, optimize solutions, and position Albania as a world leader in artificial intelligence management. According to the country's authorities, such technologies are a reflection of the future, in which the creativity of a person and a virtual machine cooperate to revise politics, ethics and national digital identity.
Diella (from the Albanian "Sun" — approx. Izvestia) is the first member of the government created with the help of artificial intelligence. The model was launched in January 2025 as a virtual assistant consultant for users of the e-Albania state portal. It helps citizens solve various bureaucratic tasks using voice commands. The country's authorities called the AI official "another achievement in the pursuit of deep digital transformation."
The Albanian Government created the Diella to combat widespread corruption in the state. The minister responsible for overseeing economic transactions between officials and private contractors uses algorithms to identify errors in the system without human assistance. Edi Rama called this initiative a revolutionary step that will make financial procedures "100% free from corruption." Decision-making using artificial intelligence is fully traceable and makes hidden money frauds almost impossible. Diella will be fully operational in 2026, and her "children" will grow up at the same time.
A Kafka-worthy idea
Recently, artificial intelligence has been increasingly endowed with human qualities. Diella is not the first time that real people are being replaced with digital prototypes. For example, in 2023, a virtual computer science teacher appeared at Harvard. He is a kind of ChatGPT, able to answer frequently asked questions from students.
Russia is also not lagging behind in the implementation of modern technologies. Since September 202, the Government has been using artificial intelligence to monitor the implementation of national projects and government programs. The machine operates in a monitoring system: it analyzes planned activities, predicts the process of completing or, conversely, not completing any tasks. AI identifies links between national goals and specific projects, calculates their effectiveness and risks. However, the final decision still remains with the human employee.
"Today, the government uses artificial intelligence, among other things, to analyze the forecast of non-fulfillment of various kinds of programs and activities. In particular, we use AI in the management system of national projects and government programs. Artificial intelligence analyzes planned events, their implementation processes, and predicts risks. The accuracy of this forecast has already reached 96%. This is important because our task is not to fix on the fact that something has not been done somewhere, but to make sure that everything is done," Dmitry Grigorenko, head of the Government staff, is quoted in the release.
Diella's phenomenon is a mixture of anxiety, curiosity, and admiration. The innovation of the Albanian government leaves no one indifferent. The opinions of experts on this matter are also divided. Some believe that the introduction of AI into the political system is quite a normal practice today. Alexander Didenko, head of the artificial intelligence laboratory at the Moscow School of Management Skolkovo, told Izvestia that he did not see any negative consequences of the introduction of the digital minister. Diella is a user—friendly bot with a competent, intuitive interface, as well as an interesting but complex "digital avatar".
— I would divide the whole story into two aspects. The first is the understandable implementation of simple algorithms in the public procurement process. There are dozens of such examples around the world. For the convenience of the user, the agent has an interface in the form of a chatbot — nothing new, every citizen of the Russian Federation has the same on Gosuslugi. The point here is not some special humanization, but the fact that natural language is the simplest and most understandable interface for any more or less literate Homo sapiens. The consequences are only positive, and interaction with such systems is becoming more accessible and easier. But then there is the second aspect of "Madam Minister" — it's just a PR trick. A voice and a digital avatar in national clothes roll over the text interface. This is an absolutely unjustified complication in terms of functionality, difficult in technology and redundant in the logic of the business process," the expert stated.
Other experts argue that making artificial intelligence aware can have a detrimental effect on people and restrict their rights altogether. For example, according to Alexey Pushkov, Chairman of the Federation Council Commission on Information Policy.
"In Albania, the AI Minister has become pregnant," said the head of the Albanian government. There were analogies of machines with people. Then there will be more of them. The next step is to recognize AI as a person and give it rights similar to human rights, for example, the right to protest charges and go to court in order not to be disabled for transgressions. When AI and robots gain their own rights thanks to the suicidal policies of people who stupidly believe in "progress," people will see how their real rights, on the contrary, will be reduced. Why would an omnipotent AI obey a human at all?" Pushkov wrote on his Telegram channel.
Thus, a lot of controversies around AI are not developing out of thin air. Some researchers advocate its development, while others, on the contrary, believe that such trends will lead to the replacement of humans with digital power in many areas, including professional ones. It is important to understand that a virtual machine can be a worthy assistant in many matters, but developing it to a superintelligent level is probably not the best idea.
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