Minister for Industry and Science Ed Husic said that despite AI now being a prevalent part of people’s lives, he said there was a demand for some sort of regulation from the community.
“The Albanese government wants to basically set up the next reforms that can give people confidence that we’re curbing the risks, maximising the benefits, and giving people that, as I said, that assurance that the technology is working for us and not the other way around,” Husic told ABC radio on June 1.
“We want to make sure that Australia has got a fit-for-purpose regulatory regime when it comes to AI, particularly what we’re seeing around generative AI. And again, the aim is to give people confidence that we are curbing the risk and maximising the benefit of new technology,” he said.
“We want to invite not just people that are involved in technology, but we want the broader public and others to have their say as well,” he said.
The minister said the broader public was also invited to take part in the consultation around new regulations, with the government releasing two papers on the matter.
Tech Industry Welcomes the Move
The Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering (ATSE) has welcomed the government’s discussion paper calling it a critical step to safeguard society.ATSE, which comprises over 900 of Australia’s leading technologists, engineers, and applied scientists, said despite its enormous benefits, Australia needed to mitigate any potential harms.
Kylie Walker, CEO of ATSE, said Australia could become a global leader in responsible AI and an early adopter of AI Ethics Principles.
“This is a critical national conversation, and we welcome the government’s leadership in facilitating it,” she said in a media release on June 1.
“We must focus on both the opportunities and the risks of widespread adoption; the scope and adequacy of national planning and policies; the fitness of legal and regulatory approaches; and the implications of increasing geopolitical competition and geo-specific regulation in AI-related technologies and industries.”
Walker also called on the federal government to examine the significant environmental cost of these technologies, in particular, the tremendous power and water requirements that are needed to power AI use.