Name in original language
Nacionalni program za spodbujanje razvoja in uporabe umetne inteligence v Republiki Sloveniji do leta 2025 (NpAI)
Initiative overview
Slovenia’s National Programme on Artificial Intelligence (NpAI) addresses the opportunity to strengthen economic competitiveness, public service performance and societal well‑being through the development and use of trustworthy AI. It responds to challenges identified in the national context, including fragmented coordination, uneven uptake across sectors, skills gaps, limited data availability and concerns about public trust, legality and ethical use. The strategy adopts a horizontal approach across the full AI lifecycle rather than a sector‑specific model and is embedded within Slovenia’s wider digital and development policy framework.
The strategy is structured around ten strategic axes: building a dynamic AI ecosystem; education and human resources; research and innovation; deployment of reference AI solutions; establishment of technical infrastructure; strengthening security through AI; increasing public confidence; ensuring an appropriate legal and ethical framework; international cooperation; and the creation of a national AI observatory. These axes translate into policy priorities focused on ethical and trustworthy AI, data and computing capacity, human‑centric deployment, and alignment with European initiatives. Identified weaknesses include insufficient coordination, shortages of skilled professionals, limited investment levels and uneven access to high‑quality data, which the strategy seeks to address through coordinated governance, investment and monitoring.
Slovenia builds on recognised strengths, including more than four decades of AI research, established centres of excellence in universities and research institutes, and strong capabilities in language technologies, high‑performance computing and international cooperation. The strategy focuses on six priority areas with high expected impact: health, Industry 4.0, language technologies and cultural identity, public administration, sustainable food and agriculture, and the environment and spatial planning. Measures include support for research and innovation projects, development of data spaces and supercomputing infrastructure, and reference deployments to accelerate adoption by both the public and private sectors.
Governance is ensured through an interministerial coordination structure led by the Ministry responsible for digital transformation, with participation from research institutions, industry, public authorities and civil society. The strategy places explicit emphasis on ethics, legality, human rights and safety, including requirements for privacy, transparency, accountability and human oversight. Expected outcomes include increased investment in AI, wider uptake across priority sectors, improved skills and education provision, strengthened public trust, and enhanced international visibility of Slovenian AI competences, with monitoring and renewal foreseen beyond the initial 2021–2026 period.
Name of responsible organisation (in English)
Mechanisms to involve stakeholders in strategy design, implementation or monitoring
Please describe these mechanisms or other efforts for stakeholder engagement
Is there a mechanism to monitor implementation?
Yes
Monitoring mechanism description
Has this initiative been evaluated?
Not yet, but an evaluation is foreseen
Are evaluation results public?
No
