Industry minister Tim Ayres targets hyperscalers for more AI deals
He can’t hide his enthusiasm about AI, but says he has more work to do with states on guidelines about construction of data centres.
Industry Minister Tim Ayres has confirmed the Albanese government expects to seal more deals to collaborate with tech giants on artificial intelligence in the wake of recent agreements with Anthropic and Microsoft.
But in an interview with Capital Brief, Ayres said the government’s AI ambitions depended on close co-operation with state governments to ensure data centres had a social licence amid concern about their use of water and power.
Last month, Ayres released a statement of expectations about data centres, including that they should serve the national interest, support Australia’s energy transition, use water sustainably, invest in local jobs and strengthen local research and innovation capability.
Ayres also wants the tech giants to commit to working with Australian startups to develop their use of AI.
