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Open Knowledge is collaborating with governments to prototype an integration with open data portals that enables users to ask natural-language questions and receive responses traceable directly to the underlying datasets.
The problem
As AI becomes a primary gateway to information, public institutions that publish open data face a new and complex challenge: how can they ensure that AI tools referencing their datasets generate accurate, transparent, and verifiable answers — given that existing mechanisms for transparency, provenance, and verification are not yet adapted to this AI-driven information landscape.
The opportunity
We are building a direct connection — using a Model Context Protocol (MCP) that connects AI directly to official data portals such as CKAN. With this, we can enable AI-generated responses to be traced back to their original datasets. By partnering with national governments to test this on real-world open data, we can create a proven, repeatable model for responsible and transparent AI use with public data.
This project is a collaborative initiative grounded in real-world challenges. Two pilot programmes are taking place in 2026 under the umbrella of the Digital Public Goods Alliance (DPGA) in partnership with national governments to become a reproducible and scalable reference of responsible and transparent AI integration with open data infrastructure.
Follow our progress, from research notes to community stories:
Brazil and OKFN partner to enable citizens to ‘talk’ to national data
'An Honest Reflection on the Integration of LLMs into Open Data Portals', by Patricio Del Boca
[Recording] Technical community consultation on MCPs and LLMs
Roundtable: 'CKAN at 20 and the Future of Open Data'
Announcement of Strategic Funding to Enhance Multilingual, Sector-specific AI Literacy and Develop Trustworthy AI for Open Data
Practical links
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Open Knowledge’s AI Learning Labs is an initiative that aims to experiment with AI, translate knowledge from social sector organisations around the world, and produce public, multilingual AI-literacy resources tailored for organisations addressing similar issues elsewhere.
Together, we will catalyse learning and develop replicable methods to help organisations build AI skills, use AI responsibly, and develop their own AI projects. All resources will be openly available at School of Data.
Join the discussion on the Open Knowledge Forum
Join the School of Data community
CKAN is the world’s leading open source data management system. Created at OKFN two decades ago and a recognised digital public good (DPG) since 2023, CKAN is the backbone of open data infrastructure on every continent — powering national governments, intergovernmental bodies, and research institutions.
🎉 We are celebrating 20 years of CKAN with various activities throughout 2026.
This project has been made possible thanks to the generous support of the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation (PJMF). We are grateful for our ongoing partnership in promoting digital literacy and investing in AI for the public good.
Learn more about its funding programmes here.
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