The aim is to ensure that artificial intelligence is used with respect for the values of democracy, equality, and human rights, said Deputy Minister of Research, Innovation and Digital Policy, Nicodemos Damianou, in his welcome address at the Press and Information Office event on “Empowering Europe with Artificial Intelligence and the European Commission’s multilingual services based on Artificial Intelligence,” which took place on Friday morning at the Presidential Palace. The European Commission has already established a specific policy framework for Artificial Intelligence to improve the provision of public services, the Director-General of the European Commission’s Translation Directorate, Christos Ellinides, told participants at the same event.
According to Damianou, today’s presentation of multilingual Artificial Intelligence tools by the European Commission “is tangible proof of how this technology translates into practical, useful tools that support the daily operations of public and private organizations.”
As he explained, these tools offer capabilities in all 24 languages of the Union that until now required time, cost, and specialized personnel, such as accurate automatic translation, conversion of speech to text, writing assistance, and summarization of lengthy documents, while conveying his “extremely positive” impressions of “both their technological sophistication and their functional value.”
He added that all the above are even more important in view of Cyprus’ upcoming Presidency of the Council of the European Union in the first half of 2026, as effective communication with Member States and European institutions, as well as the accurate presentation of our positions and policies, are key to a successful Presidency.
He further pointed out that the Deputy Ministry is incorporating the use of these tools into a broader strategy for the effective use of Artificial Intelligence by the public and private sectors, having already taken, as he said, the first step since last December with the adoption of the Digital Assistant, “the first Generative Artificial Intelligence tool in the Cypriot public sector,” which, according to the Deputy Minister, has responded to over 180,000 citizen queries in just nine months.
He added that a specialised Committee on Artificial Intelligence has been set up, the National AI Taskforce, while the new National Strategy, which will include practical measures for the integration of Artificial Intelligence in the public and private sectors, is expected to be completed by the end of the year. At the same time, with the new “AI in Government” funding program, companies are invited to develop AI solutions that respond to real challenges in public administration.
He also said that Cyprus will soon become part of the European AI Factories network, with the proposal to participate in the Pharos AI Factory, led by the Greek Government, which will offer Cypriot entities access to computing power, specialised knowledge and training opportunities.
He further noted that the arrival of international technology companies on the island enhances opportunities for the domestic ecosystem, creating jobs and highlighting Cyprus as a hub of innovation and technology in the region, while at the same time, through the AI Act, the first comprehensive regulatory framework for Artificial Intelligence, Europe seeks to protect citizens from risks and set clear rules for the use of technology, while promoting innovation.
“For us, it is not just about technological progress. It is about ensuring that Artificial Intelligence is used with respect for the values of democracy, equality, and human rights, and in this context, our sensitivity as a society to these values, but also to protecting our children from the associated risks, is a given,” concluded the Deputy Minister.
In his presentation, the Director-General of the European Commission’s Translation Directorate said that it is essential to ensure equal representation of languages in the modern digital age, and this is even more true now, with the development of AI and large language models (LLMs).
He added that the 10 languages most used on the internet include six EU languages, but there is a big difference between the first language and those that follow.
The European Commission has already established a specific policy framework for artificial intelligence, consisting of the EU Regulation on AI, the European Commission’s Policy Guidelines, 2024-2029, the use of AI to improve public service delivery and the exploitation of untapped potential in data and supercomputing infrastructure, he continued.
He further noted that all member states will receive the Strategy for the practical application of AI, which aims to promote the development of the technology and support industry and the public sector in better understanding and using AI with a view to achieving a competitive advantage for the benefit of EU Member States.
He added that the Strategy for the practical application of AI also aims to strengthen opportunities for start-ups within the EU through various programs and investments, facilitating a workforce ready for AI through training programs and academic programs for AI, increasing AI investment in the EU (InvestAI program to mobilize pound 200 billion in investments, including pound 20 billion for Gigafactories) and establishing sectoral flagship initiatives in areas such as healthcare, mobility and transport, manufacturing and construction, climate and environment, agriculture, defence and security, etc.
Specifically for the public sector, Ellinides said that the Commission aims to promote greater adoption of AI by public services, improve the quality of services for citizens through the “Digital Europe” program, promoting the development of productive AI solutions to help citizens and businesses with bureaucratic procedures, and creating an AI toolkit for public administrations with the aim of exchanging practical tools
“The ultimate goal is to create a continent of AI, a continent with digital and technological sovereignty, without dependencies on the right (across the Atlantic) or left (Asia), always based on the right supercomputer infrastructure, European-sourced data, digital skills of the workforce, simplification of the regulatory framework, and development of AI algorithms within Europe,” he stressed.
In her own address, the Director of the Press and Information Office, Aliki Stylianou, expressed her satisfaction that the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Translation, after many years of work and dedication, has developed multilingual digital tools to such an extent that they have now become reliable aids in everyday life, offering a mature ecosystem of language technologies with Artificial Intelligence, “from high-quality automatic translation and writing assistance to speech-to-text services and smart summaries.”
She added that services can benefit from all these useful digital language tools, which are offered free of charge, ensuring accuracy and clarity, greatly facilitating our administrative work.