Government tables $40m for "safe and responsible" AI

The federal government will put $39.9 million into supporting the adoption of artificial intelligence in “a safe and responsible manner”.

The bulk of the funding - $21.6 million over four years - will be to establish a “reshaped National AI Centre” - which is presently run by the CSIRO but will instead be re-housed under the Department of Industry, Science and Resources (DISR) - and an advisory board, also within the department.

In tandem with this, the government will invest $15.7 million over two years into developing AI policies, focusing on “industry analytical capability”, reviewing and bolstering existing regulations in health care, consumer and copyright law.

Lastly, $2.6 million over three years will be allocated to responding and combatting national security risks related to AI.

The funding comes amid a rapidly heating up AI race in enterprise and government, that has culminated in a large-scale trial of Microsoft Copilot for M365 among federal agencies.

In addition to the $39.3 million program, the Digital Transformation Agency, which plays an advisory role within federal government, intends to “develop and implement policies to position government as an exemplar in the use of AI, with costs to be met from within existing resources”.

Elsewhere in the budget, the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet received $2.2 million in 2024–25 for projects to uplift capability across the Australian Public Service, which will include “AI integration and enhancing the quality of data to inform policy analysis".

The budget papers do not, however, provide any detail on the amount being invested in the whole-of-government Copilot trial. Recent efforts to uncover that amount in senate committees have been unsuccessful.