AI Basic Act

Draft of the AI Basic Act Full Text of Agency Reports

Timeline and Key Controversies in the Promotion of Taiwan’s “AI Basic Law”

Focus Areas in Legislative Interpellations

Unclear Division of Regulatory Responsibilities: The National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) has both research funding and organizational capacity, yet it has repeatedly been questioned for “passing the buck” of AI governance responsibilities to the Ministry of Digital Affairs. This has led to concerns about an imbalance between development and regulation.
Lack of Transparency in Decision-Making Process: The Executive Yuan’s decision on February 26 lacked official meeting records or supporting documents. Lawmakers have called for complete openness and transparency in the entire decision-making process.
Widespread Concerns in Industry and Academia: If the Ministry of Digital Affairs—an agency of the third tier—becomes the competent authority, it may lack sufficient manpower and budget, and may not be able to fully implement policy. This could impact Taiwan’s international AI competitiveness and talent pipeline.
High Attention to Data Sovereignty, Local Language Data, and Open Data: The development of AI technology should safeguard traditional Chinese and the unique characteristics of Taiwanese culture. The government is expected to establish a national-level open data and AI training data repository.

Timeline for Taiwan’s Promotion and Legislative Debates on the AI Basic Law (2023–2025)

2023

March 2023 Newly inaugurated legislators immediately questioned the progress of the “AI Basic Law.” Then-Premier Chen Chien-jen and Minister without Portfolio Wu Cheng-chung both responded positively, emphasizing “optimism, technological policy continuity, following the US and Japan models, and encouraging R&D.”

2024

March 14, 2024 [Legislative Yuan] National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) Minister Wu Cheng-chung reported in the legislature that an “Executive Yuan version of the AI Basic Law draft” will be available by the end of the year, highlighting that Taiwan will adopt a US/Japan-style “guidance first, legislation later” approach to encourage innovation and monitor international developments.
March 19, 2024 [Plenary Interpellation] Wu Cheng-chung explicitly stated that the draft will follow the models of the US, Japan, and the UK, and will be proposed before year’s end.
May 3, 2024 [NSTC] Wu Cheng-chung: “We expect to introduce the AI Basic Law by the end of the year.”
May 23, 2024 [NSTC Minister Wu Cheng-Wen] responded in the Legislature: “The AI Basic Law will be launched this year, with an aim to submit it to the Executive Yuan before the end of October.”
June 5, 2024 [First Consultation Meeting] NSTC convened a consultation meeting on the AI Basic Law draft, inviting industry and human rights groups, and emphasizing a balance between innovation and human rights.
July 15, 2024 [Draft Announcement] NSTC officially released the draft of the AI Basic Law to the public and opened it for comment.
September 30, 2024 [Review Progress] The public comment period for the draft ended. Minister Wu Cheng-Wen stated in the legislature that regulatory review was complete, and the draft was expected to be sent to the Executive Yuan by the end of October, aiming for legislative review in the same session.
October 22, 2024 [Executive Review Submission] NSTC submitted the AI Basic Law draft to the Executive Yuan for review.
November 28, 2024 [Education Committee Interpellation] Legislators questioned whether the draft had been significantly revised by the Executive Yuan. NSTC responded that “the direction has not changed significantly, and at the latest, the draft will be submitted to the Legislative Yuan in the first session next year.”

2025

February 6, 2025 [Executive Yuan Press Conference] The Executive Yuan Deputy Minister explained, “The draft of the AI Basic Law has been submitted for review by the Executive Yuan and will be revised promptly and submitted for legislative review before the next session.”
February 26, 2025 　[Major Turning Point] The Executive Yuan, without a public resolution at its formal meeting, suddenly instructed that the "draft bill would be overseen by the Ministry of Digital Affairs (MODA)."
- Question: February 26 was not an official Executive Yuan meeting day, raising concerns about decision-making transparency.
- CNA Report (opens in a new tab) Supplement: According to a CNA report on April 23, 2025, MODA explained that the Executive Yuan formally instructed, on February 26, that MODA would be responsible for promoting legislation and providing further interpretation of the AI Basic Law draft. The draft is expected to be submitted to the Legislative Yuan for review after approval by the Executive Yuan. The draft was originally proposed by the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) last year, made available for public comment from July 15 to September 13, 2024, and reviewed at an Executive Yuan meeting on November 22, 2024, with a request for revisions before resubmission.
March 17, 2025 　[NSTC Official Cheng-Wen Wu Questioned at Education and Culture Committee] He acknowledged that authority over the AI law had been transferred to MODA, saying, "NSTC will focus on AI research." The decision was made after inter-ministerial discussions at the Executive Yuan.
April 16, 2025 　[Legislative Yuan Holds First Public Hearing on "AI Basic Law"] 　Most experts advocated that the competent authority should have horizontal coordination abilities (such as a special committee at the Executive Yuan level), accelerate legislation on sovereign AI and open data, and defend Taiwan’s local language data and cultural sovereignty.
April 23, 2025 　[MODA Briefs the Media on Progress] MODA stated that, as instructed by the Executive Yuan on February 26, the draft is under MODA’s leadership, now placing more emphasis on its regulatory role: "balancing the encouragement of innovation with regulation."
- CNA Report (opens in a new tab) Supplement: On April 23, MODA further explained that the draft would be responsive to the needs of Taiwan’s industry and society, adhering to the core principles of "encouraging innovation while upholding human rights," and guiding government agencies to develop and promote AI applications. The draft is not a "regulatory law" per se, but rather sets out principles for AI development and policy integration. Detailed regulations (such as data management and AI risk classification) will be advanced later through subordinate legislation.
April 29, 2025 [Education Committee General Interpellation] Legislators questioned whether the initial “R&D-focused, regulation as support” approach would shift to a “regulation-oriented” one; raised concerns over the Ministry of Digital Affairs’ capacity (as a third-tier agency) in terms of staff and budget; and criticized the opaque decision-making process, demanding the Executive Yuan clarify its decision-making transparency. Questions also addressed open data, sovereign AI, AI training databases, and energy policy (including nuclear power development).

Taiwan Legislative Yuan’s First “AI Basic Act” Public Hearing — Driving AI Innovation and Ushering in a New Digital Era

On April 16, 2025, Legislator 葛如鈞 (Ko Ju-Chun) together with the KMT think tank, convened the Legislative Yuan’s historic first public hearing on the “AI Basic Act” draft. This event marks the beginning of Taiwan’s AI legal era. In response to the rapid global advancement of AI technologies and dramatic changes across society, economy, industry, and the legal system, Taiwan must take timely action to legislate an “innovation-driven, safety- and equality-oriented” AI law, laying a robust foundation for industrial transformation, international integration, and digital democracy.

Four Key Pillars of the Draft Act — Laying Out Taiwan's AI Blueprint

1. Development-Oriented: Innovation Above All

The draft designates the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) as lead authority, emphasizing development, innovation, and R&D. Beyond foreseeing AI risks, Taiwan must fuel industrial upgrading, academia-industry collaboration, talent cultivation, and infrastructure—seizing the global wave of AI legal reform.

2. International Alignment: Risk-Based Supervision

The draft draws from the EU AI Act, U.S. executive orders, Canadian regulations, and international norms to establish a traceable, verifiable risk-based AI management system. Government will supervise according to different scenarios (such as healthcare, finance, education, transportation), balancing innovation with public trust and global credibility.

3. Open Data & Cultural Sovereignty

Government is called upon to open/share data and boost secondary use, with an emphasis on native Traditional Chinese corpora to avoid overreliance on foreign datasets. Data openness is fundamental for AI innovation, diverse applications, and public oversight—preventing data monopolies.

4. Digital Inclusion: Narrowing the Digital Divide

The draft focuses on AI and digital education resources for remote areas, the underprivileged, and indigenous peoples. Government is required to proactively close digital gaps, enabling everyone to share in the benefits of smart technology.

Defining Accountability: NSTC Leads Development, MODA Assists Regulation

NSTC’s technology and innovation leadership gives it a forward-looking edge to upgrade Taiwan’s AI sector; MODA (Ministry of Digital Affairs) focuses on risk management and cybersecurity support. Long-term planning based on technological needs will prevent policy drift.

Why Taiwan Needs the AI Basic Act

Without harmonized legal frameworks, Taiwan’s industries struggle to integrate and compete globally.
Major countries have enacted AI-specific laws; without legislative action, Taiwan risks “running naked in the AI wave,” missing opportunities and unable to mitigate future risks.
Robust legal foundations enable AI education, innovation, data governance, and digital rights, helping Taiwan advance beyond a hardware-based economy.
This people-oriented draft promotes partnership across academia, industry, and government, building an equitable and innovative AI ecosystem.

Key Provisions Snapshot

NSTC is clearly established as the competent authority.
Creation of an AI Strategic Committee, led by the Premier, to coordinate state-wide.
Full coverage of open data, language/cultural sovereignty, personal data, funding, industry investment, and universal education.
Strengthened international cooperation, regulatory adaptation, and comprehensive risk governance.
Every article centers on balancing innovation with human rights protection.

Read the full draft: View Draft (opens in a new tab)

Experts & Agency Participants

This public hearing brought together leading scholars, industry, and ministerial representatives.

Expert List (保持中文原名，to avoid translation errors):

序號	姓名及職稱	所屬單位	推薦單位
1	陳縕儂教授	國立臺灣大學資訊工程學系	國民黨黨團推薦
2	呂冠緯董事長兼執行長	均一平台教育基金會	國民黨黨團推薦
3	林意蓉經理	Gogolook 政府關係暨公共政策	國民黨黨團推薦
4	蔡祈岩理事長	中華民國資訊經理人協會	國民黨黨團推薦
5	薛良斌共同創辦人	MeetAndy AI	國民黨黨團推薦
6	李建良特聘研究員	中央研究院法律學研究所	國民黨黨團推薦
7	王志清共同創辦人暨數位長	LeadBest Consulting Group	國民黨黨團推薦
8	洪毓祥博士	資訊工業策進會	民眾黨黨團推薦
9	郭榮昌執行長	日商優必達株式會社股份有限公司	民進黨黨團推薦
10	許明暉教授	臺北醫學大學大數據科技及管理研究所	民進黨黨團推薦
11	侯宜秀秘書長	財團法人台灣人工智慧學校基金會	民進黨黨團推薦
12	許永真教授	臺灣大學資訊工程學系	民進黨黨團推薦
13	邱文聰處長	中央研究院智財技轉處	民進黨黨團推薦
14	林志潔特聘教授	陽明交通大學科技法律學院	民進黨黨團推薦

Summary of Agency Written Reports

Note: The following is an AI-generated English summary of each agency's report. For the full original texts (in Chinese), please see the full version here (opens in a new tab).

考選部

The Ministry of Examination stated that civil service exam categories for information-related jobs currently include “information processing,” “information engineering,” and “cybersecurity.” The creation of new AI-specialized exam categories will depend on requests from government agencies and emerging needs; the ministry will coordinate to update rules and hold exams as Taiwan’s AI workforce requirements grow.

勞動部

The Ministry of Labor is highly attentive to the impact of AI on the labor market and already offers AI/tech-related vocational training to guide workforce transformation. Employment support platforms such as “TaiwanJobs” are in place, and the Ministry is drafting guidelines concerning anti-discrimination, labor-management negotiation, worker privacy, and plans continuous review of laws and protections to uphold employee rights in the age of AI.

金融監督管理委員會

The Financial Supervisory Commission released “Core Principles for AI in Finance” and supplementary guidance that focus on governance and accountability, fairness, privacy and client interests, system robustness and security, transparency and explainability, and sustainable development. The FSC will continue to monitor AI adoption in the finance sector, promoting innovation while emphasizing consumer protection, risk management, and regulatory compliance.

行政院主計總處

The Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics reported NT$7.4 billion budgeted in 2025 for AI-related projects, including NSTC, MOEA, and MODA (Ministry of Digital Affairs) initiatives. It will allocate funds in accordance with the progress of AI policy and the AI Basic Act’s implementation.

國家科學及技術委員會

NSTC highlighted the draft’s seven basic principles—sustainability, human agency, privacy, security, transparency, fairness, accountability—and four focal themes: innovation/talent, risk management, rights and data use, legal adaptation. NSTC leads AI research, talent cultivation, and international cooperation, asserting the necessity for a comprehensive and balanced AI Basic Act.

個人資料保護委員會籌備處

The Personal Data Protection Commission (preparatory office) recommends that privacy and data minimization be integral to all AI systems, with robust mechanisms embedded by design. When AI applications process personal data, compliance with Taiwan’s Personal Data Protection Act is mandatory, and the commission will monitor global trends for ongoing law refinement.

衛生福利部

The Ministry of Health and Welfare notes widespread AI use in healthcare for diagnosis, management, and safety. The ministry has funded centers for “Responsible AI,” clinical AI verification, and AI impact research, focusing on transparency, explainability, security, privacy, clinical safety, fairness, and sustainable healthcare integration.

交通部

The Ministry of Transportation and Communications has launched legal research on AI in transportation, favoring a “Taiwan model” that differentiates strict legal supervision for high-risk AI (e.g., self-driving) and flexible self-regulation/guidelines for others. Initiatives include the Intelligent Transport Systems plan, open transportation data via the TDX platform, and supporting workforce digital transformation.

財政部

The Ministry of Finance actively supports AI development through tax incentives—current law recognizes AI-related spending, and amended regulations will enable more businesses to claim credits for AI product development. Expanding the Industry Innovation Act, MOF aims to boost AI investment as part of national digital and green transformation.

經濟部

The Ministry of Economic Affairs encourages firms to adopt AI via tax breaks, R&D partnerships, and tailor-made AI solutions for local industry sectors. It develops cloud service platforms to lower adoption thresholds and sponsors workforce training, international partnerships, and industry-specific capability building.

教育部

The Ministry of Education systematically promotes AI learning resources across all educational stages: creating AI learning platforms and competitions for K-12 through university, strengthening teacher training, and expanding university and polytechnic AI course offerings, with a strong focus on hands-on, interdisciplinary, and industry-linked learning.

文化部

The Ministry of Culture monitors the use of AI in arts and cultures, drafting sector-specific guidelines and regulations to safely incorporate AI in creative work, address copyright concerns, and define rules for grant funding and award participation for AI-generated works. It balances innovation with the protection of artistic and cultural rights.

中央研究院

Academia Sinica’s Generative AI Risk Taskforce studies copyright, personal data, risk governance, social and environmental impact, and public governance challenges posed by AI. It is committed to interdisciplinary research and stands ready to provide independent technical and legal advice to policymakers.

數位發展部

The Ministry of Digital Affairs references international experience, advocating for Basic Act legislation with a focus on innovation, risk management, and human-centered development. MODA advances the draft by employing five strategic tools: computing power, data, talent, marketing, and funding, and oversees legislative interpretation and implementation.

國防部

The Ministry of National Defense supports the AI Basic Act as a means to develop a secure and competitive national defense. Although the draft does not explicitly address military AI, MOD is preparing special regulations and governance for sensitive military use and will continue to strengthen coordination with MODA and review defense AI rules.

法務部

The Ministry of Justice serves as legal advisor, explaining distinctions between government information disclosure and data openness, and will assist in ensuring the Basic Act fits within national legal frameworks and administrative requirements.

行政院

The Executive Yuan recognizes the act’s necessity, setting forth national AI vision and governance priorities—anchoring digital inclusion, open data, labor rights, and innovation in law—expediting the bill’s progress to the legislature.

行政院人事行政總處

The Directorate-General of Personnel Administration is focusing on in-service AI training for civil servants, creating AI learning modules and digital platforms to enhance the government’s AI capacity and speed up digital transformation.

Legislator Ko’s Commitment

“Taiwan’s AI industry must deploy ahead—not just regulate, but actively promote R&D and innovation. If authorities focus only on control and red lines, Taiwan will always lag behind. The future of AI should be led by innovative agencies like NSTC, with government, industry, and academia marching forward together.”

“The AI Basic Act is Taiwan’s AI constitution for the coming decade: prioritizing development, inclusive equality, data sovereignty, and investment—ensuring Taiwan’s place in the global AI race. Let’s work together to safeguard Taiwan’s technological future!”

*All summaries above are translated and synthesized by AI.

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