Australia's AI battlelines
The political battle over AI is beginning to take shape, but it's far from certain whether it will be fought along the lines we've grown accustomed to.
If artificial intelligence really stands to transform every aspect of our lives, and many smart minds think it will, then it’s reasonable to assume it will also transform our politics. It’s just not entirely clear in what way, yet.
In an interview with Capital Brief’s Jennifer Duke published on Monday morning, opposition treasury spokesman Ted O’Brien suggests he favours a laissez-faire approach to regulating AI, as distinct from the “middle way” approach favoured by Treasurer Jim Chalmers.
“I am a liberal at heart, which means I believe in small government and I am pro-technology,” O’Brien told Jennifer. “We have to be open eyed about potential risks. But there is too much focus on the potential problems about AI and too little said about the benefits it can bring to Australian society."
Politicians say a lot of things, and the media often reads too much into them. O’Brien’s comments do hint at a re-positioning of the Liberal Party away from the anti-business, tech-phobic populism that defined it under Peter Dutton, and towards its historic roots. But the comments are also fairly vague, and could be interpreted as at odds with statements made by opposition leader Sussan Ley who has called for guardrails in the implementation of AI, and protection for creative communities.
