In Australia, the Department of Industry, Science and Resources is starting work on a National AI Capability Plan.
The government of Australia is making efforts to boost its competitiveness in the fast-growing AI industry with a new National AI Capability Plan.
The country’s Minister for Industry and Science Ed Husic today announced that the industry will work in cooperation with the Albanese Government to develop the Plan which aims to grow investment in Australian AI capabilities and ultimately help promote economic and productivity growth.
The plan, to be finalized around late 2025, will be identifying key areas of industry strength and fostering innovation both in the related scientific research and in the private business sector. It will also explore possible AI applications in key economic segments like agriculture, mining and renewable energy. The government has committed significant funding to the project and is working together with the industry to ensure the safe and responsible adoption of AI.
Projections suggest that AI and automation could contribute up to $600 billion annually to Australia’s GDP by 2030. The country is already home to around 650 AI companies, and foreign investors have injected $7 billion into Australian AI technologies over the past five years. In 2023 alone, $2 billion in venture capital was directed toward AI applications in the country. This growth highlights the increasing importance of AI in Australia’s economic future.
On the background of the growing investor interest in artificial intelligence which attracts a larger share of global funding each year, non-AI driven segments of the Australian fintech sector and, specifically, blockchain-related ventures faced a significant contraction in 2024.
The cooperation with the Albanese Government in the realm of AI is fueled by its recent successful efforts in the field. The Albanese Government committed $1 billion to critical technologies through its National Reconstruction Fund and supported nearly $500 million in AI and machine learning projects in 2022-23.
The AI plan will build on notable Albanese initiatives like AI Adopt centres for SME upskilling and the National AI Centre’s micro-skills course. In addition to the existing framework, the Australian government introduced proposed AI guardrails for high-risk settings and the Voluntary AI Safety Standard, emphasizing the safe, responsible adoption of AI in Australia.
