Albania's plans to use an artificial intelligence (AI) avatar to help combat corruption are facing fresh scrutiny after prosecutors opened a major investigation into the government agency that developed the system, an investigation by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) found.

Diella, meaning "Sun" in Albanian, was launched as a chatbot in January 2025 before being elevated to cabinet minister later that year. Prime Minister Edi Rama has said she will eventually help monitor state purchases and evaluate government tenders.

But prosecutors accuse senior officials at the National Agency for the Information Society (AKSHI) of rigging tenders in favour of a criminal group and receiving kickbacks, including cash hidden in wine boxes, OCCRP reported. More than €40mn in property, vehicles, bank accounts and cash linked to the alleged scheme has been ordered seized.

The agency's director and deputy director have been charged with violating public procurement rules and cooperating with a criminal organisation, while two technology company owners have also been charged. None of those accused has been indicted and the investigation remains ongoing, OCCRP said.

The probe has raised questions over whether AI can credibly serve as a tool against corruption when the institutions responsible for developing and operating it face allegations of misconduct.

Diella's development was not among the tenders allegedly affected by the scheme.

OCCRP also reported that prosecutors suspect a technology entrepreneur was kidnapped and threatened with death in 2025 in an effort to make him withdraw appeals against more than a dozen AKSHI tenders.

Diella's presentation as a ministerial nominee in 2025 was made during a session of Albania’s parliament that descended into chaos when opposition lawmakers disrupted Prime Minister Edi Rama’s presentation of what he said was the world’s first artificial-intelligence government minister. Opposition MPs banged their fists on desks and shouted over the prime minister, forcing the speaker to suspend the debate after just 25 minutes.

There was further controversy when actor Anila Bisha took the government to court earlier this year, alleging that her face and voice were used without permission to create the virtual cabinet member. The government rejected the claims, saying it did not misuse her likeness.

Albania, which hopes to join the European Union by 2030, faces continued pressure to tackle corruption. The government has said Diella's decisions will be auditable, but details of how she will oversee tenders have yet to be fully set out.