Read this article in Thailand.
The Thai government's legal advisory body has partnered with Microsoft to transform access to legal information, move towards OECD membership, and prove that digital transformation is about people, not just technology.
A quiet digital transformation is being formed inside the imposing buildings along the historic Chaofraya River due to the important arteries of regional trade.
For almost a century, the State Council of Thailand (OCS) has been the guardian of the country's legal framework. Today, it leads digital transformation that redefines how the law is not just how it is drafted, updated and accessed, but also how the nation positions it at its global stage.
“Digital transformation is not just about technology.” says Nirplapanth, executive director of OCS. “It's about people. It's about how we use technology to better serve our citizens and to help Thailand advance.”
And that's exactly what OCS is doing. By leveraging Microsoft's cloud and AI capabilities, OCS can better manage large quantities of legislative documents, facilitate complex research into interlinked laws, and accelerate the transformation of Thailand's legal frameworks to meet international standards and alliances.
A legal environment that requires innovation
Thailand's legal system, like many people around the world, faces unique challenges of the digital age. With over 70,000 legislative acts, ministerial regulations, royal laws and institutional notices and guidelines in effect, the scale and complexity of the information at hand is immeasurable.
“These documents are not just numbers, they are deeply interconnected,” explains Nilfrapunt.. “Each law can affect other laws or be constrained by others, and everything must be in line with the Constitution as well as international standards. Maintaining this synchronization is a monumental job.”
In the past, OCS staff relied on printed records and institutional knowledge to perform their duties. The basic legal database was launched in 1994, but was limited in terms of searchability, structure and accessibility.
Enter AI and TH2OECD initiatives
The core of OCS conversion is as follows: Th2oecd -A jointly developed AI-driven legal comparison system with Microsoft's partners OCS and Stelligence. Built on the Microsoft Azure Openai platform, OCS staff can analyze over 70,000 Thai legal documents and compare them with over 270 OECD legal instruments (real-time and inter-language).
“Language has always been one of the biggest barriers to aligning Thai law with international standards,” says Nirpurapund. “Now, using AI translation and comparison tools can fill that gap.”
TH2OECD AI System automatically converts Thai laws into English and OECD standards. Natural Language Processing (NLP) is then used to compare and highlight differences, allowing legal experts to assess the integrity of the provisions and to recommend updates more accurately. All this runs securely on Microsoft Azure Cloud. This led to OCS to store the law as non-searchable PDFs, and thus to store them as structured, searchable legal text. With Microsoft 365 and Copilot, OCS teams can work together more easily, update documents faster, and conduct policy analysis more effectively from anywhere in the country.
Mike yeah, According to Microsoft Asia, the Vice President and Vice Advisor said “We are proud to help the AI Council work to leverage AI laws to adjust OECD standards. We are responsible for comparing over 70,000 Thai laws with 276 OECD equipment within a year. This is a process that usually takes several years to other countries.
Paving the path to OECD membership
National reform is not the only move to modernize the structure of the OCS. It is also a strategic step towards joining the Paris-based international group OECD. Membership unlocks new opportunities for trade, investment and global cooperation in Thailand.
“OECD membership is more than a badge, it's a commitment to international standards, transparency and innovation,” says Nilprapunt. “TH2OECD helps us get there faster by aligning our legal structures with global best practices.”
Future plans include expanding the use of the system in other Thai government agencies, consolidating databases from Cabinet bureaucrats and other agencies, and creating a centralized legal portal that both government officials and citizens can use in AI support.
As Thailand enters a new era of legal transparency, inclusion and modernization, its leaders know that this is just the beginning. By building a digital infrastructure for justice and law and working with trusted partners to do so, OCS shows how AI can serve public goods.“We don't believe in transformation for itself,” Nirpurup concludes. “We believe in transformation that empowers people, so every law is in the hands of not just books, but what it intends to protect.”
