The standard
UNI is Italy's national standards body. Its standard UNI 11621-8:2026 is part 8 of a series on professional role profiles for information and communication technology, and it covers the profiles related to artificial intelligence. It entered into force on April 30, 2026.1
1UNI 11621-8:2026
Profili di ruolo professionale per l'ICT - Parte 8: Profili di ruolo professionale relativi all'Intelligenza Artificiale (IA)
. Status: in force.
The standard applies to the professionals who design, develop, integrate, and manage AI systems. People who only use existing AI tools fall outside it.2 It builds on the principles of UNI 11621-1, the first part of the series, so the AI profiles follow the method used across the whole series.
2UNI, announcement
Scope as stated by UNI, with the list of the twelve profiles.
uni.comThe twelve profiles
We group the profiles by area to make the list easier to read; the grouping is ours. Each name links to AIPIA's English page on that profile, with responsibilities, skills, and training.
Strategy and governance
- Chief AI Officer
- Sets the organization's AI strategy, runs the project portfolio, and answers for compliance.
- AI Consultant
- Advises companies and public bodies on decisions to adopt AI.
- AI Product Manager
- Owns AI-based products and services across their lifecycle.
Engineering
- AI Prompt Engineer
- Designs the instructions that govern how people work with generative systems.
- AI Algorithm Engineer
- Designs, implements, and optimizes the algorithms inside AI systems.
- AI Deep Learning Engineer
- Builds systems on deep neural networks and large foundation models.
- AI Machine Learning Engineer
- Moves models from the lab to production and manages them there.
- AI Natural Language Processing Engineer
- Works on language models and conversational systems.
Data, security, and research
- AI Data Engineer
- Designs and runs the data infrastructure AI systems depend on.
- AI Data Scientist
- Turns data into predictive models and business decisions.
- AI Security Specialist
- Protects AI systems from attack across their lifecycle.
- AI Research Scientist
- Develops new techniques at the research frontier.
Law 4/2013 and associations
Italy separates regulated professions, such as law and medicine, from the many professions organized outside a statutory order. Law no. 4 of January 14, 2013, covers the second group. Article 2 lets professionals form voluntary, private professional associations, with no exclusive right of representation.3 AIPIA is one of them, constituted in Rome on May 23, 2025.
3L. 4/2013, art. 2(1)
associazioni a carattere professionale di natura privatistica, fondate su base volontaria, senza alcun vincolo di rappresentanza esclusiva
Article 7 allows an association to issue its members an attestation covering membership, professional requirements, quality standards, and any certification against the relevant UNI standard issued by an accredited body. Article 7(2) adds that the attestation is optional for practising the profession.4
4L. 4/2013, art. 7
non rappresentano requisito necessario per l'esercizio dell'attività professionale
Certification and Accredia
Certification under UNI 11621-8 is issued by Accredia-accredited bodies; AIPIA provides training aligned with the standard and issues credentials.
Accredia is Italy's single national accreditation body, designated under Regulation (EC) 765/2008 and supervised by the Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy.5 Certification of persons is carried out by third-party bodies that Accredia has accredited to ISO/IEC 17024.6
5Accredia, Ente Unico
Operates under Regulation (EC) 765/2008 and ISO/IEC 17011.
accredia.it6Accredia, professional figures
Certification of conformity to UNI standards under Law 4/2013 by accredited third-party bodies.
accredia.itAIPIA's credentials are separate from certification and describe what a person has learned. AIPIA is the first Italian AI association to issue European Digital Credentials, the European Commission's format for verifiable credentials, sealed under eIDAS and checkable on Europass.
Using the profiles from the US
For an American company hiring or contracting in Italy, the profiles are a practical tool. They let a job description, a statement of work, or a procurement requirement use terms Italian candidates and suppliers recognize. They also give a structure for planning AI literacy under Article 4 of the EU AI Act: which roles need which knowledge.
We can map your existing US job families to the twelve profiles, train your staff in Italy against them, and introduce you to members who hold the relevant skills. The legal frame around those roles is on our page on Italy's AI law.
Map your roles
Send us the job titles you plan to fill in Italy, and we will tell you which profiles they match.
Write to info@aipia.us