Participants of the NEA workshop on exploring the use of artificial intelligence within regulatory bodies, held at the NEA headquarters on 25-26 March 2026
The NEA Working Group on New Technologies (WGNT) organised a workshop on 25-26 March 2026 to advance collective understanding of how artificial intelligence (AI) can support regulatory oversight and internal processes within nuclear regulatory bodies.
The event brought together nuclear regulators and AI experts from regulatory bodies from 15 NEA member countries and international organisations to present case studies on AI tools under development or already in use. These included making summaries and presentations with AI, using AI to enhance simulations, and information retrieval from regulatory documents. The event enabled open discussion on practical lessons learned, use cases and how to identify valuable AI applications.
Key takeaways from the discussions were:
- There is a need to establish an AI framework for the use of AI in the regulatory body, including procedures and guidance;
- Well-scoped AI tasks and projects perform best;
- Clear success criteria for AI tools and AI projects are needed;
- On-premise models and tools could serve as a possible solution to cybersecurity, data sovereignty and data protection issues; and
- Human expertise remains essential for decision making and for leveraging AI outputs.
The workshop fostered lively discussion, with participants comparing implementation experiences, identifying shared concerns, and recognising opportunities for further co-operation.
Presentations and discussions with questions and answers during the workshop
Mr Eetu Ahonen, Vice-Chair for the WGNT, led the workshop and reflected on the workshop’s achievements:
“This workshop demonstrated the value in international collaboration. Every regulator is exploring AI from a different angle, but the experiences we have with implementation of AI tools, data security challenges, and ensuring human oversight are remarkably similar. By sharing openly and learning from each other, we are strengthening our ability to use AI responsibly and efficiently to improve nuclear safety.”
The workshop was organised by the NEA Working Group on New Technologies (WGNT), which provides a forum for regulators and their technical support organisations to exchange information and experience on regulating the life cycle of new technologies, to support the development of a common understanding, as well as to explore opportunities for reaching common regulatory positions related to new technologies. The NEA will publish a brochure capturing key workshop findings, challenges, and good practices for regulatory use of AI.
