Agents are systems capable of gathering information, making decisions, and autonomously performing tasks to achieve specific goals. Many major companies working with AI, including OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and Microsoft, have already integrated such agents into their popular chatbots.
The Estonian government will launch “AI ID codes” that will allow agents to act on behalf of individuals, companies, or organizations within strictly defined parameters, according to the announcement.
“In the future, AI will increasingly perform digital tasks for us: drafting reports, preparing tax returns, or interacting with information systems,” Euronews quotes Estonian Prime Minister Kristjan Mihal as saying. “Therefore, it must be clear who is acting, on whose behalf, with what rights, and who ultimately bears responsibility.”
Estonia’s move aligns with the findings of recent studies, which indicate that traditional identification systems, such as multi-factor authentication when logging into a banking app, do not allow for effective oversight of agents who “act, make decisions, and perform operations at machine speed.”
According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), in 2026 Estonia ranked fifth among the ten most digitally advanced countries, sharing the spot with Norway, Ireland, and Denmark.
The country has already established a digital public administration system based on the state-supported e-ID system, which allows citizens to access government services online.
In addition, the m-Residency program was launched, giving foreign citizens the opportunity to run a digital-focused business from anywhere in the world using the same mobile ID that the government issues to its citizens.
