2026-08-07
New report: the AI election that never was – despite parties claiming they are ready
How prepared is Swedish politics for AI, cybersecurity and digitalisation? In a new report, Consid has analysed the digital communications and policy proposals of all parties represented in the Swedish Parliament ahead of the 2026 general election. The findings reveal a clear gap between the digital policies that actually exist and the political narrative presented to voters.
Artificial intelligence is already transforming the labour market, the public sector and Sweden’s competitiveness. Yet Consid’s report, The AI Election That Never Was, shows that digital issues remain notably absent from the political debate.
“Our analysis shows that most parliamentary parties have far more comprehensive policies on AI, cybersecurity and digitalisation than their public communications suggest. There is a clear gap between political substance and political messaging – what we call the digital paradox,” says Peter Hellgren, CEO of Consid.
The report is based on an analysis of all parliamentary parties’ communications, party manifestos and policy proposals. To enable meaningful comparison, Consid developed two analytical frameworks:
- Digital Visibility Index– measures how prominently AI, digitalisation and cybersecurity feature in each party’s public communications.
- Digital Readiness Index– assesses the maturity and depth of each party’s digital policy agenda.
The report finds, among other things, that:
- AI and digitalisation continue to have a relatively low profile in political communications ahead of the 2026 general election.
- Almost all parliamentary parties have more developed digital policies than their external communications would suggest.
- The key differences between the parties are not whether digitalisation matters, but the role they believe technology should play in shaping Sweden’s future.
The report is intended for policymakers, the public sector, businesses, journalists and anyone seeking to better understand how Swedish politics is responding to the digital transformation.
Download the report
The AI Election That Never Was – An analysis of the digital readiness of Sweden’s parliamentary parties ahead of the 2026 general election is available to download free of charge here.