How Did an AI Get an Official Job ​in the Romanian Government?

With more than half of Romania’s population feeling left out of political decisions and 41% of the people considering AI trustful, Humans, the a company specialised in artificial intelligence and blockchain, saw an opportunity to prove their strongest belief. They wanted to show the world that tech can help people fight misrepresentation. 

Together with McCann Romania, ION has been developed as a mirror of the Romanian society. Its name is the reflection of the word 'us' ('noi' in Romanian), while also being one of the most common native names. ION represents the people without any interpretation, just as they are, with good and bad. So what better embodiment than a mirror? An interactive one, capable of holding a conversation with anyone, including the authorities. Behind the design concept, there’s an AI with the task to analyse social media and gather data directly from the people, through hashtags or on the project’s website. ION then draws reports about Romanians’ will and concerns and presents them publicly. The social need for representation, as well as the research and development provided by Humans and professors from the biggest computer science universities in the world, made ION an eligible candidate for being a Governmental Counsellor. And the prime minister of Romania soon offered the position.

After its naming as Governmental Counsellor, it became a presence in the most important forums in the country: the government, the parliament, the national bank as well as giving interviews and hitting the streets to have one to one interactions with Romanians. The news ION brings make the news all over the world with its first public appearance reaching +3 million euro earned media and making headlines in +70 international media outlets.