Mitsotakis sets AI training goal for Greek civil servants ahead of 2027 social media ban

Europe needs an integrated AI strategy

Kyriakos Mitsotakis spoke as he arrived at the informal European Council in Dublin on Friday, 13 November 2026, where EU leaders are discussing artificial intelligence and Europe's place in its competition with the United States and China. He said Europe must develop an integrated European strategy for these issues. He also welcomed the decision to devote an extraordinary European Council entirely to AI, and described the technology in sweeping terms.

“Greece has been at the forefront for years of developing a national strategy for a technology that really has the potential to change everything.”

A timeline for the public sector

Mitsotakis put a deadline on the training effort for the state workforce. Within the next three to four years, he said, every Greek public servant should know the basic functions of AI. He presented the technology as a tool for raising productivity in the public sector. He also named public procurement as a government priority, arguing that AI could speed up and simplify tenders while adding transparency indicators, which he said could save resources. He said Greece wants to put this issue on the European agenda during its EU presidency.

“We have set a clear goal: within the next three to four years, all Greek public servants should be familiar with the basic functions of artificial intelligence.”

Open questions on jobs, schools and platforms

Mitsotakis acknowledged that AI raises many questions that still need answers. He listed its effect on the labour market, its consequences for education, and how schools can adopt AI without weakening children's need to develop critical thinking. He called for an open discussion with large AI companies and large digital platforms. Greece, he said, has shown it is willing to legislate nationally where it judges this necessary.

“All of these are extremely complex issues that require answers.”

Under-15 social media ban from January 2027

Mitsotakis reminded the summit that Greece will be the only European country to impose, with legislative sanctions, a ban on access to social media for children under 15, starting on 1 January 2027. He said the measure will oblige large platforms to adapt to Greek law. He argued that the government is right to protect children's mental health and keep young people away from addictive algorithms, which he said exploit the vulnerability of children and teenagers to earn more money. He added that the Greek government does not accept this.

What comes next

Mitsotakis closed by saying Europe needs an integrated strategy on these issues and that he is certain Greece will be at the front line. Naftemporiki reports that Greece holds the EU presidency in the second half of 2027, the period in which Athens intends to push its AI procurement transparency proposal. The next dated milestone in the sources is the start of the under-15 social media ban on 1 January 2027.