Independent Member for Curtin Kate Chaney MP has welcomed a more coordinated approach to AI announced by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, while highlighting that beyond data centres, there is so much more that needs to be done to build trust in the use and development of AI in Australia.
Comments attributable to Kate Chaney MP:
“It’s about time the Prime Minister takes AI seriously and recognises its impact across so much of our economy and society.
“I welcome a more coordinated approach through the establishment of an Office of Artificial Intelligence within the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet. This should provide national attention to the risks, opportunities and coordination challenges of AI. This office will have its work cut out for it, juggling competing priorities while maintaining a broad scope.
“The Prime Minister also announced a national regulatory framework for Artificial Intelligence, but it appears much of the substance is focused on the physical AI infrastructure only.
“It is a promising development that the Government’s Data Centre Expectations will be bolstered as mandatory obligations for AI developers. This is something I have been pushing for since the Government released its Data Centre Expectations in March.
“But public confidence and trust will only be built upon if the expectations of AI infrastructure developers are strengthened and legislated. The Government must require data centres to have:
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lifetime energy requirements supplied by 100% additional renewable energy
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minimum standards of water use and energy efficiency
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genuine community consultation and a commitment to community benefits
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transparency on the size of the development, water consumption, energy consumption, noise, purpose and timelines
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free or cheap compute for Australian public interest researchers and universities
“Addressing the data centre challenge is of great importance to Australians, and I urge the Government to move as fast as possible to progress this.
“While data centre standards are important, there are many broader known and emerging risks the Government is still failing to prioritise. I outlined 18 key priorities in the AI Discussion Paper I released last month. This announcement addresses two of them – addressing copyright and making data centre expectations mandatory. But the rest remain unaddressed challenges.
“One unaddressed issue is taxation – how will we ensure that Australians keep some of the enormous economic value generated by AI companies? Tech companies are very good at minimising their Australian tax by re-routing profits to low-tax havens overseas. We need to ensure we have an effective mechanism to keep some of the economic value in Australia.
“Deepfakes and disinformation also requires urgent action. We are seeing AI deepfakes flooding the internet – from child sexual abuse material, to large-scale disinformation campaigns funded by foreign states, to scams. The Government needs to work to address this growing threat.
“We also need greater funding for the AI Safety Institute, investment in skills and education, a legislated automated decision-making framework, mandatory reporting of AI incidents and scenario analysis for the economic disruption that may lie ahead.
“I urge the Government to make the most of the newly announced Office of Artificial Intelligence to prioritise addressing the risks so Australia can take up the opportunity that AI presents.”
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