For safe and secure use of AI tools in health and care services, it is crucial that the AI models and systems are of high quality. Being able to adapt large language models to Norwegian health and care services could help reduce several risks associated with using AI tools in healthcare.
The government's digitalization strategy has AI as a separate focus area and will, among other things: [146]
- work to further develop a national infrastructure for AI that will provide access to foundation models based on Norwegian and Sami languages and social conditions
- investigate how data and text from public organizations can be used for ethical and safe training of national language models
- clarify what constitutes lawful use of intellectual property and other protected works in text and data mining processes
In the State Budget for 2025, 20 million kroner is allocated to the National Library's work with artificial intelligence and training of generative language models [147]. The Research Council of Norway has allocated over 1 billion kroner to establish four to six AI research centers across sectors to address challenges such as societal challenges from digital technology development [148].
The government announced on March 21, 2025, that they would establish "AI Norway," which will be a new national arena for innovative and responsible AI and part of the national administrative apparatus now being established. At the same time, the government announced that the Norwegian Communications Authority (Nkom) will have supervisory responsibility for the EU's AI Act [149].
The recommendations in this report related to adaptations to the Norwegian health and care service will, to the greatest extent possible, seek synergies and collaboration with relevant work and stakeholders at the national level.
To facilitate the use of generative AI models based on foundation models adapted to conditions in the Norwegian health and care service, the Norwegian Directorate of Health recommends the following measures:
- establish quality frameworks for large language models used in Norwegian health and care services
- build and share competence on development and use of large language models
- establish common data foundation
- investigate infrastructure with computing power adapted to the health and care sector's needs
- investigate a governance structure for large language models for the health and care sector
Most measures will have to be solved in collaboration between a number of actors, both in the health and care sector and outside, such as the National Library, the university and college sector, the Digitalization Directorate, and the Research Council.