Artificial intelligence (AI) represents an opportunity to deliver more responsive and effective service to citizens. In the European Ombudsman’s Office we have started taking our first careful steps toward AI use, guided by the same principles that are the basis of our work: good administration, accountability, and transparency.

This page contains information on how the European Ombudsman Office uses AI to perform ancillary tasks related to handling complaints and conducting inquiries, as well as administrative and communications tasks, thus increasing the efficiency of the Office’s activities.

It also contains links to relevant information material on the protection of personal data and the main rights complainants have in their contacts with the European Ombudsman’s Office.

Why is AI being used?

In recent times, AI systems have become increasingly important in many fields, including public administration. The European Ombudsman has decided to explore the use of AI in relation to some aspects of complaint handling as well as administrative and communication tasks. The key principle guiding our use of AI is human oversight: staff members using AI remain fully responsible for any outputs produced with AI support.

For which tasks is AI used?

AI can help the Ombudsman with several ancillary and repetitive tasks that are part of handling complaints and conducting inquiries. These tasks include improving the clarity and style of drafts (including letters, recommendations, and decisions), researching information about EU and national laws, and summarising and analysing large documents attached to the complaints or obtained in the context of inquiries.

In areas such as human resources, budget and finance, and IT development, AI can help to edit drafts, process large documents or data sets, provide coding support for IT and web development projects, conduct general research and information gathering.

When carrying out communication-related tasks, we may use AI to verify grammar, generate ‘non-fact’ images, and to provide summaries of documents and other information written by our staff.

All AI-generated content is checked for accuracy by staff before it is published. Our website also already provides machine translations of content which has not been manually translated in order to have a more expansive translation policy for documents on our website even with the Office’s limited resources. More information on our language policy here.

Which AI systems are used?

We use corporate tools developed and managed by the European Commission for use across EU institutions. These include E-translation, which is used automatically in every online complaint and for every webpage, and E-summary (in a pilot phase).

We have also launched a pilot project to assess the opportunities offered by GPT@EC, a general-purpose generative AI system using large-language models. As an internal AI tool of the European Commission, it ensures the level of safety required for the complaint-handling and inquiry-related, administrative, and communication tasks of the European Ombudsman. Before the pilot project was launched, the Ombudsman’s Office assessed the potential risks to fundamental rights and personal data and defined appropriate safeguards.

The use of GPT@EC at the European Ombudsman follows relevant regulations such as the AI Act and EU data protection law. It is also guided by a Service Level Agreement with the European Commission. Transparency, security, and integrity are key to the pilot project to maintain public trust. Strict measures are part of the Service Level Agreement to make sure that the Ombudsman Office’s drafts, working material, and any other case-related material or personal data are not accessed by the staff of the European Commission, nor any other third party, without the Ombudsman’s authorisation. This is essential to maintain the independence of the Ombudsman’s Office.

Data processed by the Ombudsman’s Office are not used to train or improve AI models.

How is human oversight ensured?

Staff members are trained to ensure the use of AI is closely monitored and remains under human oversight. This means that AI outputs are carefully checked by staff before they are used in case handling and inquiries, administrative and communication tasks.

AI is not used to take decisions, make recommendations, assess admissibility, determine outcomes, or prioritise complaints. These activities remain exclusively within the responsibility of staff members.

The Ombudsman staff remain fully responsible for the outcomes produced with AI support. AI assists with specific tasks but does not replace human judgment or decision-making in complaint handling and conducting inquiries.

Our commitment

The Ombudsman’s Office remains committed to ensuring that technology serves our fundamental mission: upholding the principles of good administration and protecting citizens' rights in their interactions with EU institutions. Regular reviews and monitoring help ensure that AI use remains appropriate and aligned with our principles. AI is a tool to assist and improve accuracy and efficiency. Meanwhile, the Ombudswoman and her team continue to lead the process of complaint resolution and conducting inquiries.

We approached AI adoption not as an inevitability but as an opportunity that must be carefully evaluated against our core values. We are committed to:

• Testing thoroughly before broader deployment
• Maintaining meaningful human oversight at all times
• Protecting personal data and confidential information
• Ensuring accountability and traceability
• Maintaining transparency with the public
• Learning from experience and adapting our approach

What are the rights of complainants in relation to AI at the European Ombudsman Office?

The European Ombudsman’s Office ensures that the use of AI is in line with the AI Act, the EU data protection law and the principles of good administration. You can find the data protection record and privacy statement on the use of GPT@EC  here.

Information about the rights of complainants, including data protection complaints and service complaints, can be found here.

If you have any questions or comment about the use of AI in our office, you can contact us here.

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This notice reflects the European Ombudsman's practices as of December 2025 and will be updated as our use of AI evolves based on pilot project findings. We welcome feedback from all stakeholders.