Switzerland - AI Systems Strategy

Overview

The Strategy: Use of AI systems in the Federal Administration (SB021) is a DTI part‑strategy prepared and published by the Federal Chancellery to set the foundational rules and principles for all AI systems used by the Swiss Federal Administration. It defines a lifecycle approach to AI governance, establishes three priority action fields — competencies, trust and efficiency — and presents a vision of AI as a tool to improve public services while safeguarding democracy, fundamental rights and the rule of law. The strategy is published by the Federal Chancellery; the official PDF and web page are available via the Federal Chancellery portals (Bundeskanzlei: Strategy PDF) and the DTI guidance pages (BK: Strategy page). The strategy is intended to be implemented via a separate, detailed measures plan and through existing operational regulations.

Definitions

SB021 supplies operational definitions to create a common understanding across departments. A KI‑system (AI system) is defined as a machine‑based system that infers, from inputs, outputs such as predictions, content, recommendations or decisions that may affect physical or virtual environments and can have varying autonomy levels. The document frames a 'life cycle' including plan & design; data collection and processing; model building/adaptation; testing/validation; deployment; operation/monitoring; decommissioning. It references CNAI terminology and international sources (OECD AI principles) to harmonise definitions and foster interoperability of governance approaches.

Governance and Institutional Framework

Governance responsibility is led by the Federal Chancellery through its Digital Transformation and ICT Governance (DTI) sector. Following a decision by the Federal Council on December 12, 2025, the coordination office for the Competence Network for AI (CNAI) was transferred from the Federal Statistical Office (BFS) to the Federal Chancellery effective February 1, 2026, consolidating AI strategy and operational coordination under a single roof. Governance elements include central guidance, standard service components, departmental AI governance, and compliance with information security (ISG/ISV) and data protection (DSG) standards.

Key Focus Areas

The strategy sets out three interdependent handlungsfelder: (1) Competencies to ensure staff, leaders and service providers hold the necessary technical, legal and operational skills; this includes role‑based training, service support and reuseable architecture blueprints. (2) Trust mechanisms to ensure legal and ethical compliance, transparency, documentation and privacy safeguards; this includes life‑cycle documentation, processes to assess generative models (language models), and tools to handle sensitive data securely. (3) Efficiency improvements centred on planning, cost/benefit analyses, pragmatic automation of process steps, standard services, and reuseable AI components. Across these focus areas the strategy advances concrete objectives: e.g., by 2030 prioritise cost/time savings in defined use cases; create standard services for recurring administrative tasks; ensure modular, interoperable solutions that respect digital sovereignty. The strategy emphasises human‑centred design, sustainability (economic, ecological, social), robustness and resilience of AI systems, and the need to maintain transparency and explainability appropriate to the context of use.

Implementation Framework

Implementation is assigned to the Federal Chancellery (DTI) in cooperation with CNAI and federal departments. On December 12, 2025, the Federal Council officially acknowledged the implementation plan ('Umsetzungsplan zur KI-Strategie der Bundesverwaltung') featuring eight core measures, while transferring the CNAI coordination office from the Federal Statistical Office to the Federal Chancellery as of February 1, 2026. Implementation mechanisms include unit-level AI use plans, lifecycle documentation, risk assessments, standard service catalogues, and staff training curricula.

Monitoring and Evaluation

Monitoring is to be realised by reporting mechanisms coordinated by the DTI and CNAI, with periodic public transparency on the types of AI systems used and aggregated risk profiles. Evaluation criteria include achievement of stated efficiency gains, compliance with legal/ethical principles, robustness of security measures, and uptake of training/competency measures. The strategy calls for an implementation plan including monitoring indicators, milestone reviews and mid‑term evaluations; departmental self‑assessments and central audits are anticipated as part of oversight. Public transparency is balanced with security and privacy requirements; aggregated reporting and cataloguing of systems will be used to inform stakeholders and policy makers.

Penalties, Liability, and Appeals

SB021 itself is an internal part‑strategy and does not create new criminal or civil penalties; rather it establishes mandatory internal governance obligations for administration units. Legal liability and enforcement remain anchored in existing law (e.g., liability rules in Swiss civil law, data protection obligations under the Federal Act on Data Protection) and relevant administrative disciplinary regimes. The document foresees remedial measures, administrative withdrawal or suspension of AI system approvals, and internal accountability mechanisms where non‑compliance poses legal or operational risk. Appeal pathways for affected persons remain under established legal procedures; where statutory obligations arise from later implementing legislation, legal remedies under those statutes would apply.

Relationship to Other Instruments

The strategy is explicitly situated within the Strategy Digitale Bundesverwaltung and the national 'Digitale Schweiz' priorities. It is a partstrategy pursuant to the VDTI (Article 17) and must be implemented in alignment with the Digitalisation Ordinance (DigiV), the Federal Data Protection Act (DSG), the Information Security Act (ISG) and related ordinances and procurement rules. The document references previous federal AI guidance (e.g., 2020 Leitlinien) as complementary inputs and indicates cooperation with EJPD, UVEK, EDA and WBF on legal/regulatory and sectoral matters. It also anticipates and coordinates with the federal work programme to implement the Council of Europe AI Convention and proposed national AI regulatory steps to be prepared through 2026.

International Alignment

The strategy emphasises alignment with international principles and norms (OECD AI Principles, Council of Europe AI Convention) and cooperation with international partners on interoperability, norms and procurement best practice. It instructs CNAI and DTI to consider international standards, certification schemes and sectoral regulatory work when developing technical and governance templates. The approach aims to preserve Swiss competitiveness and to facilitate cross‑border data flows under appropriate safeguards while observing international human rights and non‑discrimination commitments; coordination with federal foreign affairs and justice departments is specifically foreseen for international legal alignment.

Implementation Timeline

Sources and References