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Australia has what it takes to lead in AI

We have the talent, research and stability to be an AI leader. To win, we need to ensure our policy settings are genuinely focused on opportunity, not fear.

Bran Black Bran is the CEO of the Business Council of Australia.
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The question isn’t whether Australia will be left behind in the AI revolution — it’s whether we’ll have the courage to lead it, writes Business Council of Australia CEO Bran Black. Shutterstock.

Australia possesses many of the essential ingredients to become an AI leader and we must seize the opportunity, otherwise we risk being left behind the rest of the world.

One narrative that dominates many conversations around AI in Australia is that we are most likely to be a passive recipient of global technology. An "AI taker" rather than “maker”, as UK policymakers have termed the distinction.

But this pessimistic assumption fundamentally discounts some of our greatest national advantages when it comes to the application of new technology.

It’s not often talked about locally, but in global boardrooms Australia has long been seen as a fertile ground for new technologies. Payments technology is but one example, where for years Australia was leaps ahead of our larger peers. We are good at grasping new innovations, and we can do so with AI too.

Ideas is where we publish opinion and analysis from external contributors on the most important topics in the new economy.