TCU Article on AI Regulation Published in International Journal
By Secom / Serint
The Brazilian Federal Court of Accounts (TCU) has published an article in the International Journal of Government Auditing, the official journal of the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI), which brings together experiences and insights from supreme audit institutions (SAIs) around the world. The article highlights the Court's experience in using artificial intelligence and its role in shaping regulatory discussions on emerging technologies in Brazil's public sector.
Titled Regulating the Regulation: How the TCU Exercised Its Independence to Address Artificial Intelligence Challenges in the Brazilian Public Sector, the article appears in Volume 52, Issue 4 of the journal.
Authored by auditors Diego Oliveira Farias, Klauss Nogueira, Pedro Coutinho Filho, and Thacio Scandaroli, from the Audit Department for Information Technology (AudTI), the piece outlines how TCU has been leveraging AI tools and developing technical expertise to support decision-making and elevate the quality of regulatory debates.
The authors emphasize that institutional independence goes beyond resisting external pressures. It also involves the ability to act with autonomy, technical consistency, and public accountability when addressing complex and rapidly evolving issues. In this context, the TCU is presented as an example of an institution that balances innovation with prudence, while remaining firmly committed to the public interest.
Among the highlights, the article features ChatTCU, a generative AI-based tool developed to support the Court's activities. In addition to its internal use, TCU has shared the tool's source code with other institutions, fostering collaboration and helping expand technical capacity across the public sector an initiative aligned with principles of technical leadership and algorithmic transparency.
The article also underscores the TCU's contribution to regulatory discussions in Brazil, particularly through its executive summary Risks of Artificial Intelligence Regulation in Brazil, submitted to the National Congress in 2024. The document identifies potential unintended consequences of poorly designed regulation, such as constraints on innovation, legal uncertainty, market concentration, and institutional misalignment, and aims to support the legislative debate with clear, evidence-based analysis.
Beyond artificial intelligence, the authors also revisit the TCU's work on topics such as blockchain, reinforcing the Court's role in guiding public institutions on the opportunities, limitations, and governance requirements associated with new technologies.
According to the authors, the TCU's recent trajectory demonstrates how independence, transparency, dialogue, and technical rigor can enhance both the legitimacy and the impact of audit institutions in sensitive regulatory environments.
Publication in the International Journal of Government Auditing broadens the international visibility of this work and reinforces the TCU's position as an institution capable of combining oversight, innovation, and applied knowledge to the benefit of public administration and society.
The Full article is available at: Regulating the Regulation: How the TCU Exercised Its Independence to Address Artificial Intelligence Challenges in the Brazilian Public Sector - INTOSAI Journal.