Isle of Man to launch AI office by year-end, targeting £50m savings and digitising public services

Isle of Man to create AI Office to seize opportunities and manage risks

The Manx government will establish a new Office for AI Development and Regulation to accelerate digital public services and deliver £50m in savings over five years. The plan was announced at the Government Conference at the Comis Hotel in Santon.

Chief Minister Alfred Cannan said AI will "significantly challenge the status quo" and warned that organisations that arrive late will "struggle to remain competitive." He called for government and business to work "in lockstep."

The office is expected to be operational before year-end. Its brief: coordinate policy, drive service digitisation, and set clear standards for safe and effective AI use across the island.

What the new AI Office is set to do

• Coordinate AI policy and regulatory responses across departments and with industry.
• Support digitisation and automation of priority services to help meet the £50m savings target.
• Create shared standards for data quality, model risk controls, transparency, and human oversight.
• Develop skills and training pathways for public servants and partner organisations.
• Provide a single point of contact for business engagement and pilots.

Regulatory context: EU AI Act signals the direction

Cannan noted growing demand for AI regulation and said the island will need to consider its position. The EU's Artificial Intelligence Act is a useful marker of where policy is heading across risk tiers, transparency duties, and enforcement.

For reference, see the EU AI Act on EUR-Lex: Regulation (EU) 2024/1689.

Timeline

The office is slated to open before the end of the year. Departments should prepare now so early projects and controls can go live in the first quarter after launch.

What government teams should do now

• Appoint an AI lead per department with a clear mandate and decision rights.
• Create a shortlist of high-volume, rules-based processes for near-term automation and assistance.
• Audit data sources: ownership, quality, retention, and lawful basis for use.
• Stand up risk controls: DPIAs, human-in-the-loop checkpoints, incident reporting, and model documentation.
• Update procurement: pre-market engagement, outcome-based specs, and sandbox-friendly contracts.
• Upskill staff: baseline literacy for all, deeper training for product owners and risk teams. Explore role-based learning paths at Complete AI Training - Courses by Job and certification options such as AI Automation Certification.
• Launch 90-day pilots with clear KPIs (cost per case, cycle time, accuracy, user satisfaction).
• Design for inclusion and safety: accessibility, bias testing, and clear escalation paths.
• Coordinate with cybersecurity and privacy teams on model access, secrets handling, and audit trails.

How success will be measured

• Financial: contribution to the £50m savings plan and unit-cost reductions.
• Service quality: faster processing times, fewer errors, higher availability.
• Compliance: completed DPIAs, incident response readiness, and adherence to standards.
• Workforce: percentage of staff trained and certified for AI-enabled roles.
• Public trust: user satisfaction scores and transparency of use.

Other issues on the conference agenda

• Balancing healthcare needs, costs, and capacity.
• Managing migration.
• National air and sea connectivity ambitions.

Bottom line

The island plans to move quickly. With a central AI office, clear standards, and a joint effort across public and private sectors, departments can deliver better services, reduce waste, and keep the economy competitive.

Start now: pick the first three use cases, put controls in place, and upskill your teams. The office will be ready to help, but early movers will set the pace.