More Norwegian companies put brakes on AI use: 'Self-inflicted pain'

Norwegian companies are starting to cap how much their employees can spend on advanced AI tools. Staff use of advanced AI has become a growing expense, and the limits are meant to make employees more aware of costs when they run the models.

Christoffer Hernæs, chief technology officer at Stø, told Digi that the measures are about becoming more disciplined. He described the coming period as a phase of "self-inflicted pain", but said the company can tolerate some pain as the price of learning. He would not reveal how high Stø's cap is.

The report, published on 26 October 2026, says the caps are being introduced at several companies, not just Stø. The available text gives no figures on how much firms are spending, no names of other companies, and no details on how the limits work in practice.

The significance lies in the shift it signals. After a period of encouraging staff to use AI freely, Norwegian businesses are now putting guardrails on usage because the bills are climbing. For employers, the question is moving from whether staff should use advanced models to how much each use costs and how consciously it is managed.