AIRE helps bring artificial intelligence to market responsibly

The Ministry of Justice and Digital Affairs has launched a full-service offering for institutions and companies developing AI solutions, ensuring that the system being created is legally compliant, technically secure, and trustworthy. The AI & Robotics Estonia centre (AIRE), based at TalTech, is responsible for conducting the initial risk classification assessment of projects.

AIRE’s client relations manager Evelin Ebruk noted that AIRE acts as an advisory partner, helping developers understand the risk class of their AI solution under the EU AI Act.

“We identify which compliance requirements need to be met and, where necessary, direct developers to the relevant competent authority. If it turns out that a solution requires a more thorough assessment, AIRE also supports the applicant in completing the sandbox service application form, so that developers do not have to navigate the regulatory landscape alone.”

Subsequent stages of assessment involve sector-specific authorities, such as the Consumer Protection and Technical Regulatory Authority, the Data Protection Inspectorate, the State Agency of Medicines, the Transport Administration, and the Financial Supervision Authority, depending on the company’s area of activity.

The Statistics Estonia can be involved in data quality assessment, and computing resources are provided by the Estonian Scientific Computing Infrastructure, through which access to the LUMI supercomputer is available if needed.

The service, developed by the Ministry of Justice and Digital Affairs, aims to give developers confidence and accelerate responsible innovation.

“The sandbox environment provides developers with clear and documented feedback, which reduces their risks and increases trustworthiness in the eyes of investors, clients, and supervisory authorities,” said Ott Velsberg, Head of the Data and Artificial Intelligence Division at the Ministry of Justice and Digital Affairs.

The sandbox service is free of charge for the public sector and small and medium-sized enterprises. For large companies, the service is offered based on individual agreement.

To participate, please submit an application to andmed@justdigi.ee, briefly describing the planned AI solution and the type of support expected from the sandbox.

The AI & Robotics Estonia centre (AIRE) is dedicated to enhancing the competitiveness of Estonian industrial companies by helping them adopt artificial intelligence and robotics solutions.