OECD explores AI-powered regulatory inspections
The EU funded the OECD project to explore how digital tools can modernise regulatory delivery.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has published a working paper examining how data-driven regulation and digital technologies, including AI and data analytics, can help authorities carry out more targeted, risk-based and effective inspections.
The paper identifies licensing, permitting and inspections as the three pillars of regulatory delivery, arguing that these mechanisms are most effective when supported by risk-based approaches that minimise unnecessary administrative burdens while improving regulatory outcomes. The core argument is that by adopting risk-based approaches supported by technology, regulators can concentrate their efforts where they are most needed rather than applying uniform enforcement across all actors.
The OECD highlights practical uses for AI and data analytics, including identifying high-risk areas, prioritising inspections, streamlining enforcement and allocating resources more efficiently. The aim is to improve compliance while reducing unnecessary interventions for lower-risk businesses and activities.
The paper also argues that technologies can strengthen public trust in regulation by making inspections more transparent, consistent and evidence-based, improving both the effectiveness and legitimacy of regulatory enforcement.
The project forms part of broader EU efforts to modernise regulatory delivery. Drawing on Italy’s pilot experience, the OECD aims to identify lessons that can be applied across member states and other jurisdictions pursuing evidence-based regulatory reform.
Why does it matter?
The paper illustrates how AI and data analytics could help regulators move away from one-size-fits-all enforcement towards more targeted, risk-based oversight. By focusing inspections where they are most needed, authorities could improve compliance while reducing unnecessary administrative burdens, particularly for smaller businesses.
The report also reflects a wider shift towards evidence-based regulation. As governments seek to modernise public administration without weakening regulatory standards, technologies such as AI are increasingly being viewed as tools for improving both regulatory efficiency and public trust through more transparent and proportionate enforcement.
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