Georgia Dedicates $18.4M to AI Research as UNESCO Maps Governance Roadmap

Georgia has no national AI strategy, no dedicated AI law, and no single institution responsible for overseeing artificial intelligence — but a new roadmap from UNESCO’s Global AI Ethics and Governance Observatory charts a path forward, while the country’s 2026 state budget sets aside USD 18.4 million for AI research.

Published on 29 June 2026 and updated 3 July, the UNESCO assessment lays out four sequential phases for building a coherent AI governance framework. The first two focus on non-binding instruments: a national AI white paper to establish guiding principles, followed by a national AI strategy with voluntary guidelines. Later phases call for creating a dedicated institutional body and, eventually, enforceable binding regulation — following a model UNESCO describes as gaining ‘practical governance experience’ before legislating.

Where Georgia Stands Today

The figures in the report illustrate the scale of the challenge. Georgia produced 1.1 AI publications per million inhabitants in 2024, according to OECD data — against an EU-27 average of 29.8, roughly 27 times higher. Gross R&D expenditure reached only 0.25% of GDP in 2023, well below EU norms. Just 2.2% of Georgian firms had adopted AI as of 2024, and roughly 30 active AI startups operate in the country.

The 2026 state budget’s USD 18.4 million envelope — allocated across 2026–2029 — is intended to support a planned AI research and competence centre, new research infrastructure, and talent-development programmes.

EU Candidacy Adds Urgency

Georgia’s European Union candidacy status gives the governance question additional weight. The UNESCO report recommends that the country’s future institutional AI architecture align with EU governance practices — including obligations under the EU AI Act — rather than constructing a separate framework it may later have to overhaul.

Digital infrastructure is comparatively strong: 83.8% of the population used the internet in 2024, and the country ranked 15th globally for mobile broadband speeds as of December 2025, providing a capable foundation for broader AI adoption.