AI Policy and Regulation in Brazil: Comprehensive Report

Brazil is undergoing a far-reaching digital transformation—advancing artificial intelligence (AI), data protection, and IP reform as central pillars of national development. As Latin America's largest economy, Brazil offers a dynamic environment for AI innovation, pairing growing tech capacity with a regulatory shift aimed at aligning digital growth with human rights, transparency, and sovereignty.

This report provides a detailed summary of Brazil’s AI ecosystem between 2020 and 2025, structured across six focus areas: legal regulations, national AI strategies, data and IP frameworks, AI-generated outputs, investments in AI infrastructure, and the judiciary’s adoption of AI tools.

Regulatory Landscape: Data Protection and AI-Specific Legislation

The foundation of Brazil’s digital governance is the General Data Protection Law (LGPD), which came into force in 2020. Overseen by the National Data Protection Authority (ANPD), the LGPD established rights-based principles for personal data use across sectors and set the stage for AI-specific guidance. Complementary regulations introduced impact assessment rules, international data transfer standards, and cybersecurity policies.

Between 2019 and 2025, Brazil introduced multiple AI-focused bills, culminating in the 2024 Senate approval of a comprehensive AI Act. This draft law adopts a risk-based regulatory approach, similar to the EU AI Act, with obligations scaled to system risk levels. High-risk AI must undergo public impact assessments and developers may be held strictly liable for harm caused. Penalties can reach up to R$50 million per infraction or 2% of revenue. This evolving framework reflects Brazil’s intent to govern AI proactively while ensuring alignment with international standards.

Government AI Strategy: EBIA and the PBIA 2024-2028

In 2021, Brazil launched its National AI Strategy (EBIA), which outlined goals for ethical, inclusive, and innovation-driven AI development. However, with limited implementation capacity, the government introduced a revised plan in 2024—the Brazilian Artificial Intelligence Plan (PBIA) 2024-2028.

The PBIA focuses on real-world impact across priority sectors like health, education, agriculture, and public security. Key features include:

• Immediate AI deployment in hospitals and classrooms

• Creation of a sovereign data cloud

• Major upgrades to national computing infrastructure

Backed by a $4 billion public investment, the PBIA also promotes AI training, especially for underserved populations, and outlines actions for ethical AI governance, including open-source tools, public-private partnerships, and cloud security initiatives.

Intellectual Property and Data Governance

Brazil’s IP regime protects a broad range of rights, including patents, trademarks, industrial designs, and copyrights. Software is protected under copyright law, not patents, unless tied to a specific hardware function. Enforcement remains a challenge despite alignment with global IP treaties.

In response to AI’s demand for training data, Brazil’s draft AI law proposes a negotiated model for copyright holders, allowing them to opt out of having their works used in AI training. While text and data mining exceptions exist, compensation is likely required—reflecting a balance between innovation and creator rights.

The LGPD remains central to personal data governance. It applies to all data processing in Brazil, regardless of the operator’s location. AI developers must ensure that data use is lawful, purposeful, and transparent—especially when dealing with sensitive or biometric data.

AI Outputs and Legal Protections

The use of copyrighted material for AI training has sparked active debate. Brazil’s proposed AI legislation allows rightsholders to demand compensation or opt-out from use in datasets—an approach that echoes global copyright concerns around generative AI. At the international level, Brazil has called for WIPO-led governance to ensure equity in AI-era copyright.

Regarding inventions, Brazil does not currently permit software-only AI systems to be patented. Patent eligibility requires a tie to hardware and compliance with novelty and industrial applicability. This may limit legal protection for certain AI innovations, raising questions about how Brazil’s IP laws will evolve to meet AI’s technical realities.

AI Investment and Infrastructure

Brazil is making significant investments in AI innovation and computing power:

• USD $4 billion allocated through the PBIA for AI projects

• R$14.7 billion from Microsoft for AI/cloud infrastructure and workforce training

• Upgrades to the Santos Dumont supercomputer, aiming for global top-five status

In parallel, Brazil is expanding data center capacity and connectivity via submarine cables and national networks. Strategic coastal access supports low-latency AI applications, while renewable energy (84% of electricity generation) underpins long-term sustainability. Brazil's data center market is projected to exceed $4.7 billion by 2029, supporting both national and global AI applications.

Judicial Adoption of AI

Brazil’s judiciary has become a key adopter of AI, aiming to reduce a backlog of nearly 80 million cases. Systems like VICTOR (Supreme Court) and ATHOS (Superior Court) assist in case filtering and precedent detection. These tools help courts focus on systemic legal issues by identifying “general repercussion” cases or repetitive appeals.

Ethical oversight is guided by Resolution 332 from the National Council of Justice, which outlines transparency, diversity, and governance principles. While these systems offer clear efficiency gains, concerns remain over their opacity and the adequacy of human supervision—particularly in criminal and high-impact civil cases.

Conclusion

Brazil’s approach to AI policy between 2020 and 2025 has been defined by regulatory maturity, strategic investment, and a focus on inclusion. With the LGPD as its data protection backbone, a Senate-approved AI Bill in progress, and a multi-billion-dollar national AI plan in motion, Brazil is emerging as a leader in responsible AI governance in the Global South.

The country’s commitment to ethical innovation, judicial transparency, and long-term infrastructure investment positions it not just as a regional reference, but as a potential global voice in shaping equitable AI norms.

To explore the full legal and policy landscape of Brazil’s AI journey, download the complete report AI Policy and Regulations of The Brazil.