The AI Literacy Practices Report: Collaboration between ARISA and the European Commission

The AI Literacy Practices: Insights from the European AI Office Survey (2025) is out! It was developed as a collaboration between the European Commission and ARISA. The report marks an important milestone for organisations across Europe in implementing AI literacy under the AI Act.

About the Report

Together with ARISA, the European Commission analysed how organisations across Europe are building AI literacy. The analysis was based on two survey rounds: one with AI Pact signatories (advanced frontrunners) and another one open to all organisations.

The report’s goal is to provide a clear view of the diversity of AI literacy approaches and to support organisations in meeting Article 4 of the AI Act, which has been in effect since February 2025. Under Article 4, organisations must ensure that staff and relevant users have sufficient knowledge to operate AI responsibly.

The report is published alongside the revamp of the repository of AI literacy practices initiated by the Commission: Repository of AI literacy practices | Shaping Europe’s digital future.

The report examines the following aspects: evolution of maturity between rounds, AI literacy approaches, target groups, training types, sector-specific adaptations, implementation levels, impacts, KPIs, and challenges. This is a valuable resource for understanding how AI literacy is implemented in practice, highlighting both successes and challenges across sectors.

Key insights

The report highlights several important trends:

• AI literacy is a strategic priority. Organisations increasingly recognise its role in responsible AI deployment.
• Training must be tailored. Effective AI literacy must match: the role (technical, leadership, compliance, operations); the skill level and prior experience of staff; the sectoral context (healthcare, finance, manufacturing, creative industries), and specific use cases and risks.
• Larger organisations and the ICT sector lead implementation. SMEs and non-ICT sectors face challenges and require EU-level support.
• Clear progress between survey rounds. The results of the survey across organisations indicate a need for: more fully implemented literacy programmes; stronger governance and AI Act alignment; more structured training paths (self-assessments, belts, modules), and better measurement of impact.
• Wide diversity of AI literacy practices across Europe. Organisations use a combination of: general awareness training, role-specific modules; governance, ethics, and compliance modules; workshops, bootcamps, peer learning, e-learning, and guidance documents.
• Main challenges remain: the rapid evolution of AI (constant need to update training), resource and expertise shortages, limited guidance on operationalising Article 4, and staff time constraints are key hurdles.
• Organisations need: support for SMEs, accessible shared resources, community learning, sector-specific literacy materials, continuous updates, and EU-level coordination.

ARISA’s role and collaboration with the AI Office

ARISA contributed extensively to the report, providing survey data, methodological design, evidence analysis, and domain expertise. This close collaboration with the European Commission’s AI Office underscores ARISA’s commitment to advancing AI literacy across Europe and supporting organisations in navigating the AI Act’s requirements.

Next steps

We encourage stakeholders to explore the AI Literacy Practices: Insights from the European AI Office Survey (2025) report. Organisations can use these insights to design effective AI literacy programmes, support staff learning, and ensure compliance with the AI Act. By leveraging these resources, organisations can advance responsible AI adoption, strengthen internal governance, and contribute to a safer and more trustworthy AI ecosystem across Europe.

Sources:

Repository of AI literacy practices | Shaping Europe’s digital future

Revamped repository of AI literacy practices | Futurium

ARISA – AI Literacy Practices Report