Artificial intelligence and adjacent technologies are entering Bhutan through public digital infrastructure, the National Digital Identity programme, and a growing base of founders building on cloud and machine learning tools. The Kingdom does not yet have AI-specific legislation, which means that risk is governed by general law, by contract, and by the data and privacy provisions of existing statutes rather than by a single dedicated regime. That gap is a reason for more careful structuring, not less. In the absence of an AI statute, deployments are shaped by the Information, Communications and Media Act 2018, the constitutional right to privacy, intellectual property law, consumer protection principles, and the way liability is allocated between developers, deployers and users. Foreign technology companies entering the market also engage the FDI Rules & Regulations 2025, under which information and communication technology is treated as a priority sector with clearer entry pathways. Cross-border data flows, rights in training data, ownership of model outputs, and accountability for automated decisions all need to be addressed at the documentation stage rather than after a dispute arises.

Basnet Attorneys & Law advises on AI governance frameworks, data sourcing and processing agreements, intellectual property ownership in models and datasets, software and SaaS licensing, and the allocation of liability for novel products. We combine technology consultation, data privacy and protection and intellectual property advice so that founders and corporates can adopt international standards where they serve overseas users while remaining compliant with Bhutanese law.