13th País Digital Summit: Presidential Candidates Presented Their Proposals on Digital Issues

An absence of proposals on digital governance and institutionalism can be observed in the proposals of the presidential candidates.

This was evident in the presentations of seven candidates during the 13th País Digital Summit, organized by Fundación País Digital. Through our Fondecyt Project on #RegulaciónConvergente, we analyzed these proposals and detected that digital institutionalism was missing from the debate, as well as a clear approach in terms of regulation.

Under the slogan “Decoding the Algorithm of the Future”, the candidates shared ideas for five common areas related to digital transformation and development for the country: digital economy, use of technologies in public and citizen security, digital health, and digital skills and competencies, both in the education and labor sector.

Evelyn Matthei proposed a public-private plan to drive the digital transformation with a focus on research and responsible use of AI, modernizing the infrastructure (5G, fiber, data centers) and creating a one-stop window to streamline permits. She also endorsed the Fintech Law and the National Space Program and quoted Estonia as a reference. She emphasized that AI must serve people and that the State must modernize obsolete procedures.

José Antonio Kast presented the “5K Plan”, focused on digitalizing the State to increase efficiency and control. His proposal includes transforming procedures to digital format, promoting citizen use of online tools, applying AI and big data in security, improving interoperability among institutions, and digitalizing health and education services. The emphasis was on efficiency and control rather than inclusive innovation.

Jeannette Jara proposed a plan that combines digitalization, sovereignty and state strengthening: extending connectivity (even to islands and Antarctica), facilitating data centers and 5G in rural areas, developing “smart cables” for environmental monitoring, promoting digital citizenship, and a state strategy until 2030 that includes technologies for security and public management. She also proposed training for 150,000 people and attracting technological investment.

Kayser placed a special emphasis on security and adapting trades and technical capabilities to the new digital ecosystem. His proposal combines the idea of strengthening protection with a clear focus on technical training: promoting retraining and trade updating so that workers can use and supervise AI systems in production sectors. The libertarian candidate was the only one who spoke directly about regulation. He stated that technological advancement is so fast that regulating artificial intelligence would be unfeasible and that the responses must be as flexible as technological change itself.

Harold Mayne-Nicholls insisted on the need to train and educate to better leverage AI and increase productivity. Marco Enríquez-Ominami requested universal 5G and fiber coverage, access to clean energies to support digitalization and the creation of a regional strategic reserve for cables and servers. Franco Parisi proposed practical measures aimed at connectivity in mobility and logistical solutions to issues such as contraband. Together, these proposals combine training, infrastructure and logistical/strategic proposals to increase access and resilience.

In parallel, Fundación País Digital presented “Proposals for Chile: Toward a Smart Country”, a document with 20 measures for 2026–2030. The recommendations include the creation of a Digital Transformation Agenda that coordinates institutions (Corfo, Digital Government Undersecretariat, Ministry of Science) and accessibility regulations aligned with international standards.

Patricia Peña, co-researcher of our Fondecyt Project on #RegulaciónConvergente, said: 

“In the proposals we heard from the main candidates, although there is consensus in recognizing the digital transformation and the challenges posed by artificial intelligence in particular, there are no proposals addressing the challenges posed by the digital or techno-media convergence process. All of them point to modernizing the State and improving the country’s competitiveness, but we observe a weak presence of a perception about the institutionalism that this whole process will require, especially in areas like communications, culture or education. There is a tendency to view digitalization from a training perspective focused on skills and retraining, yet without tackling the existing diagnoses in the media and communications sector.”

The presidential debate is moving forward in technological proposals, but the connection between the digital world and the fields of information, culture and education remains absent. This should constitute a warning regarding the outlook currently being built around technological development and its social impact.