ReguLens: ILO Introduces AI Tool for Regulatory Review

The International Labor Organization has launched ReguLens, an artificial intelligence-powered digital platform designed to help employer and business membership organizations analyze new regulations and prepare policy positions more quickly, as governments introduce labor, fiscal, and compliance reforms at an accelerating pace.

Developed by the ILO’s International Training Centre in Turin, ReguLens is intended to address a capacity gap faced by business organizations worldwide. These organizations are expected to respond to draft laws and regulatory proposals on short notice, often with limited staff and time, while still providing technically sound input on behalf of their members. According to the ILO, ReguLens enables users to upload a regulatory or legal document and receive a structured initial analysis in approximately 60 seconds, offering a rapid entry point into the policy review process.

“ReguLens was created to close the gap between the growing volume and complexity of regulation and the limited capacity of organizations to analyze it in depth,” said the ILO, as it announced the platform. The organization added that the goal is not to replace technical expertise or consultation with members, but to strengthen those processes by improving speed and consistency at the early stages of review.

Employer organizations are operating in an environment where regulatory agendas are expanding across multiple fronts, including labor standards, social security contributions, occupational health, taxation, and data protection. Policy teams are often required to assess long and highly technical documents, estimate their potential impact on businesses, identify relevant stakeholders, and formulate advocacy positions, all within compressed timelines. In many cases, organizations must prioritize which proposals to analyze in depth or risk reacting after decisions have already been made.

ReguLens seeks to streamline this process by providing a structured first reading of a proposal. Users follow a simplified workflow: uploading a document, selecting the type of analysis required, and reviewing the output generated by the system. The platform was designed to be intuitive and does not require specialized training, allowing staff with different levels of technical expertise to engage with regulatory analysis more confidently.

A defining feature of ReguLens is its emphasis on contextualization. Organizations create a profile by responding to seven strategic questions that define their operating environment, sectoral focus, and preferred level of technical language. Based on this information, the platform adjusts its analysis to reflect national legal frameworks and organizational priorities, producing outputs intended to be relevant and actionable rather than generic.

The results generated by ReguLens are geared toward advocacy and social dialogue. These include an assessment of the likely impact of a proposed regulation on businesses, identification of potential inconsistencies or contradictions with existing legislation, mapping of key stakeholders relevant to the policy process, and suggestions for structuring an advocacy or lobbying strategy. The ILO said these outputs help policy teams move more efficiently from an initial review to informed engagement with policymakers and social partners.

The platform has already been piloted by employer organizations in around 20 countries. In one case involving a Latin American organization, users compared ReguLens’ analysis with their own internal assessment of a regulatory proposal. According to the ILO, the organization found that the AI-generated output closely aligned with its internal conclusions, but was delivered in a fraction of the time. While the tool is positioned as a support mechanism rather than a decision-maker, this early validation suggests it can serve as a reliable technical reference when response time is critical.

User feedback is now informing the next phase of development. Planned enhancements for 2026 include a comparative feature that would allow organizations to evaluate a country’s regulatory framework against those of similar economies, as well as expanded customization options. These would enable users to integrate larger internal libraries of documents and references, further tailoring analyses to organizational priorities and historical positions.

The launch of ReguLens comes as regulatory scrutiny intensifies in markets such as Mexico, where companies are managing the cumulative impact of labor and compliance reforms introduced over the past several years. Employers are adjusting to changes stemming from outsourcing restrictions, expanded social security enforcement, and ongoing discussions around working time and labor conditions. These reforms have increased both the operational cost of compliance and the need for rapid, accurate interpretation of legal requirements.

In response, a growing ecosystem of HR and payroll technology providers has emerged to embed compliance into day-to-day operations. Platforms such as Worky have focused on integrating payroll, attendance, compensation, and labor regulation monitoring into unified systems. According to the company, frequent regulatory changes in Mexico—often introduced with limited transition periods—require constant system updates, as errors in payroll or reporting can result in fines, audits, or reputational damage. The 2021 outsourcing reform, which required companies to internalize payroll operations, underscored how quickly regulatory shifts can overwhelm organizations without adequate digital infrastructure.

At the same time, regulatory pressure has exposed risks associated with informal or unregulated practices in the labor market. In Mexico, an informal employment screening system known as the Buró Laboral has drawn criticism from legal experts and worker advocates. These databases compile employment histories and are sometimes shared among recruiters without workers’ knowledge or consent. While employers often view such tools as a way to manage hiring risk, legal specialists warn that the practice may violate labor rights and personal data protection laws, highlighting the consequences of operating without clear regulatory guidance or analytical capacity.

From a financial standpoint, faster regulatory cycles are also forcing companies to reassess their internal readiness. Sebastian Kreis, CEO and Founder, Xepelin, has argued that compliance is increasingly a test of financial maturity rather than a procedural obligation. As labor and fiscal authorities in Mexico and elsewhere adopt more interconnected, data-driven oversight systems, inconsistencies between payroll, tax, and labor reporting are more easily detected. In this context, companies with weak liquidity planning, reactive forecasting, or fragmented internal processes face heightened exposure.

Against this backdrop, ReguLens reflects a broader shift toward using artificial intelligence to manage regulatory complexity at an institutional level. While the platform is aimed at employer organizations rather than individual firms, its focus on speed, context, and evidence aligns with the demands of a policy environment where the timing of input can be as important as its substance.