Austrian Research and Technology Report 2020

3.7 AI in public administration
Amongst other things, the results report on drafting 
a strategy for artificial intelligence,
180
which was 
published in November 2019, summarises the present 
situation regarding the use of AI in public administra-
tion. According to the report, AI does enjoy limited 
use in public administration for specific applications: 
its use in individual services as a way to communi-
cate with citizens (chatbots, smart searching, pro-
cess support, etc.) is currently being trialled. Howev-
er, the experts involved in the report conclude that 
there is still a lack of any significant awareness in 
public-sector organisations regarding AI’s possible 
uses. Nevertheless, there are a number of projects 
under way at all administrative levels that are de-
signed not least to raise the necessary awareness 
within public administration. In the future, potential 
AI applications beyond the scope of the public sec-
tor’s actual administrative processes could build on 
data that already exist in databases, process data, 
historical documentation, legal information and rul-
ings on sensor data through to data from historical 
recordings such as weather data. One of the key 
fields of activity identified thus consists in managing 
data and building AI-related databases while also 
guaranteeing the protection of personal information. 
If non-discriminatory AI-based decision-making is to 
be ensured, potential distortions in the underlying 
data will have to be eliminated and the traceability 
and transparency of the decisions made and the pro-
180 See Federal Ministry for Transport, Innovation and Technology (BMVIT) and Federal Ministry for Digital and Economic Affairs 
(BMDW) (2019b).
181 See Federal Chancellery (BKA) (2020).
182 See Federal Ministry for Transport, Innovation and Technology (BMVIT) and Federal Ministry for Digital and Economic Affairs 
(BMDW) (2019b).
cesses that led up to them will have to be presented 
clearly.
Major challenges also lie in building up AI exper-
tise at the various administrative levels, defining and 
critically evaluating potential areas of application 
and setting the “red lines”
181
for the use of AI by the 
Austrian government; amongst other things, this 
means that administrative decisions with a direct im-
pact on people may be assisted by machines but not 
made by them (see also Chapter 3.8).
The results report on drafting a strategy for artifi-
cial intelligence
182
also defines measures that could 
potentially create a suitable framework for using AI 
in administration. Of these, the following are key:
• establishing a legal framework for using AI in ad-
ministration in order to prevent discrimination and 
systemic inequality and to safeguard people’s 
right to privacy and data protection;
• “AI check” for new digitalisation projects (e.g. as