Backpacks to track bees, bushfire modelling and sensors to detect broken water pipes are some of the technologies being developed in Australia as part of an artificial intelligence boom.
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Digital Economy Minister Jane Hume says artificial intelligence has the capacity to improve the lives of all Australians.
Senator Hume will tell a Committee for Economic Development of Australia event on Tuesday the government had two roles to play in terms of AI: an enabler and a standards setter, especially in terms of ethics.
Earlier this year the government announced a $1.2 billion digital economic strategy which included an additional $124 million commitment to the AI initiatives.
The CSIRO estimates AI technology will contribute $22 trillion into the global economy by 2030.
The AI action plan covers four areas: lifting the development and adoption of AI to create jobs and boost productivity; growing and attracting world-class talent and expertise; solving national challenges; and ensuring AI technologies are ethical.
"While we adopt and adapt to new technology, we must vigilantly protect our democratic values, our rights to privacy, and our expectations of honesty, transparency and accountability," Senator Hume says.
The government plans to set up a national AI centre, a graduates program, a pool of funding for projects such as bushfire modelling and a fund for regional projects especially in the areas of agriculture and minerals.
The minister will cite a number of projects already underway including attaching micro-sensor backpacks to bees to understand the risks to their population, and sensors to detect water pipe failures which could save millions of dollars in maintenance costs.
Australian Associated Press
