In an interview with Newsweek, Estonia’s Prime Minister Kristen Michal shared that the Estonian government works with entrepreneurs and tech companies to promote technology development and remove bureaucracy from government services and business activities, be it establishing a company, filing taxes or doing real estate transactions.
“Almost everything is online and we have already more than 120 examples of uses of AI in public services,” he explained. “They are predictive, personalised and proactive.”
The next step will be using AI in a smarter way than everybody else. “If you are using AI tools smarter than anybody else then you probably will be a winner in the markets,” Michal added. “Our private sector investments have increased, from 2017 to 2023, people with scientific degrees doubled. The only way is to increase the quality.”
Let’s look at what Prime Minister Michal is talking about.
An army of high quality kratts
A word often used when talking about AI in Estonia, is Kratt. In Estonian mythology, a Kratt is a magical creature that essentially was a servant built from hay or old household items bringing its owner riches. Now, the Estonian government uses this character as a metaphor for AI and its complexities.
One of Estonia’s most well-known Kratts – Bürokratt – is a concept of how digital services and state could operate in the age of artificial intelligence.
“Bürokratt is not just an IT project but a concept of how digital services and the state could operate in the age of artificial intelligence,” Ott Velsberg, Chief Data Officer of Estonia’s Digital Government has previously explained. “With Bürokratt, the goal has been to offer the best possible digital state experience in order to make communication with the state radically easier for both entrepreneurs and citizens.”
Artificial intelligence (AI) is a rapidly evolving field that has the potential to improve and streamline various government services and processes. Previously, Wired has written that in countries like Estonia, it has already become a part of essential national infrastructure.
From effective collection of taxes to detecting clearcut areas in forests
Tens and tens of use cases of artificial intelligence, both in the public and private sector of Estonia, are changing the way services are provided in Estonia – and globally, by Estonian companies.
For example, one of the entities actively using AI in finding possibilities for more effective tax collection, is the Estonian Tax and Customs Board; the IT house of the Ministry of the Environment has created a solution to find clearcut areas of forests; an AI solution is in use to transcribe the phone calls to Estonia’s state helpline; there is a hospital using speech recognition in their radiology operations. The list could go on for much longer.
In the private sector, significant efforts in AI can be seen by some of the largest companies, such as banks and telcos, as well as startups. Some of the well-known names include the Estonian online verification unicorn Veriff, robotic delivery company Starship Technologies and several FinTechs.
Using AI in investment promotion
In addition to Bürokratt, there are other public sector entities working towards convenient AI-powered services in Estonia. Included twice in UNESCO’s top 100 list of projects solving problems related to the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, automation of investment promotion at Invest Estonia has gained recognition from across the globe.
“In Invest Estonia we are happy to use digital technology in a smart way and live the ‘e-Estonia’ dream which is a part of the country’s core development strategy. As a small country we can make a bigger impact through digitisation and get a larger visibility in a race towards FDI attraction. Our digital tools make the work of our team more efficient and able us to work with a larger number of projects which means more successes in the sales funnel,” the Director of Estonian Investment Agency Joonas Vänto explained in an instructional video on digitisation of IPAs, created for the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
0% bureaucracy or 0% bureaucrazy
“Bureaucra(c/z)y is dead in Estonia,” declared one of Estonia’s recent campaigns, and that is not an exaggeration. As of December 2024, Estonia has become the first country in the world to digitise 100% of its government services, marking a decisive victory in the war against red tape. The campaign, titled ‘100% Digital & 0% Bureaucrazy’, invited global audiences to explore these achievements at Tallinn’s e-Estonia Briefing Centre.
Former President Kersti Kaljulaid puts it perfectly: “Estonia is with me, everywhere.” Whether you’re in Antarctica signing state documents or voting on a bus in Luxembourg, Estonian citizens and residents never lose their connection to government services. The red tape that many consider inevitable has been eliminated.
The numbers tell a compelling story. Already, 85% of Estonia’s birth registrations happen digitally, and 56% of marriage applications are filed online. Now, even divorce is digital, with an impressive 53% of applications filed online in just the first month.
But don’t worry – the system hasn’t sacrificed thoughtfulness for efficiency. A mandatory 30-day reflection period remains in place, ensuring that major life decisions aren’t made in haste just because they’re made with ease.
As life goes on, more and more digital marriages and divorces happen but Estonia certainly isn’t resting on its digital laurels.
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