Globally, countries are awakening the potential of advanced technology.
From the EU’s pioneering AI bill to various technology conferences, such as the global AI summit in Canada later this year, countries will unite as they promise to gain the benefits of digital transformation while seeking to mitigate risks. But how do you integrate emerging technologies, such as AI, into government businesses? How do you do this in a way that promotes and encourages private sector innovation? Two very different countries, Greece and Britain, offer interesting case studies to achieve this and increase efficiency and productivity.
In the UK, the government’s AI Opportunity Action Plan, supported by £20 billion in funding proposed in Prime Minister Rachel Reeves’ spending review, will seek to drive national technology overhaul, highlighting the overall improvement from health care delivery to the integration of AI-Tool into civil servants.
Earlier this year, more than 20,000 British civil servants participated in a trial that showed AI could save nearly 2 weeks a year. The government will seek to build on this, while also reducing barriers to private sector investment to promote the tech industry. As a result, leading global tech companies such as Capgemini announced billions of dollars in investments in the UK, creating highly skilled jobs and powering the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
Furthermore, as technology develops at a rate, the risk of progress will exceed people’s ability to use it. To address this, the UK government has committed to providing opportunities for training and skills improvement nationwide to better apply digital practices.
Meanwhile, in Greece, since Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis took office in 2019, he stressed the importance of modernizing public services to simplify user experience and support technology-driven growth. As a result, many services have been digitized through the Gov.gr platform, which has access to more than 1.4 billion digital transactions across 19 ministries and serves as a central hub for citizens and businesses. The Greek government is learning and applying business courses, making it easier for citizens to interact with the state, thus reducing the need for expensive and offensive bureaucracy.
Furthermore, as a medium-sized country, Greece could better focus the management of these new systems on comparing to neighboring countries, allowing the government to play a key role in shaping the technological landscape of the region.
Other innovations across Greece include the introduction of AI-powered accounting systems. This saw the launch of personal citizenship numbers, making Greece one of the first people in Europe to adopt AI technology and simplify services in the real estate sector. This not only improves service delivery and increases transparency, but also attracts investment by positioning Greece as a leader in integrating advanced technologies and fostering innovation.
Greece is also trying to become a “startup country” hoping to see technology contribute to 10% of U.S. GDP. About 33% of venture capital funds for startups operating in Greece are targeted at AI companies, highlighting the government’s welcome to boost growth in the sector by foreign investment.
Overall, the UK and Greece are guiding the path to integrating advanced technologies into the state while also promoting a booming investment private sector landscape. Changes in navigation technology present great challenges, but these countries are demonstrating the ability to transform obstacles into opportunities.
