Adopting and using new technologies in a safe and innovative way
The Government is taking advantage of opportunities from data and digital technologies by fostering a culture of innovation in the APS to deliver simple, secure and connected services. The Government is collaborating with people and business to ensure its adoption and use of new technologies is done in a safe and responsible way that meets community expectations.
The Government became one of the first in the world to conduct a whole of government trial of generative artificial intelligence (AI). Over 5,000 staff across 60 agencies trialed new ways to innovate and enhance productivity using Microsoft 365 Copilot. Following the six-month trial, an evaluation found the trial had saved up to an hour in time for trial participants when used to summarise information, prepare a first draft of a document and search for information. Additionally, 65% of managers found that Copilot had a positive impact on the quality and efficiency of team members.
86% of Copilot trial participants wished to continue to use Copilot, with 69% agreeing it improved the speed at which they could complete tasks.
Innovative approaches are being applied by the Department of Home Affairs using data and AI to enable real-time interventions in international mail consignments. Australia receives around 10 million mail consignments every month. Using an AI model, the department is successfully detecting illegal drugs before they can enter Australia and cause harm to society.
There are significant opportunities in using AI in the public sector, but its use must be managed carefully to guard against ethical risks around bias and fairness. To maintain public trust in how governments across Australia adopt and use AI, Data and Digital Ministers agreed in 2024 to the National Framework for the Assurance of AI in Government. This framework established best practice guidance for all governments to develop, procure and deploy jurisdiction-specific AI assurance approaches and policies. In addition, it embeds a principles-based approach and commits all governments to be flexible, responsive, collaborative and to continuously improve Australia’s AI assurance processes.
Having the right policies and frameworks to safely engage with emerging technologies
People expect the Government to lead by example in exploring emerging technologies and encouraging their safe and responsible adoption in the broader economy. People also want to know how their data will be used and the way decision making assisted by emerging technologies such as AI will affect them.
The Government is putting the right policies and frameworks in place to maintain public trust in how the APS will engage with new technologies.
To build public trust in its use of AI, the Government released the Policy for the responsible use of AI in government in 2024. This policy provides a unified approach for APS agencies to engage with AI confidently, safely and responsibly, and realise its benefits. It outlines mandatory agency actions, including identifying an accountable official for implementing the policy and publishing a transparency statement about the agency’s use of AI. Agencies are strongly encouraged to implement AI training for all staff and the DTA has provided an AI fundamentals training module to support agencies. The policy compliments the Government’s broader efforts to introduce mandatory guardrails for the safe and responsible development and deployment of AI in high risk settings across the broader economy.
Data is key to enabling AI but risks such as bias in AI must be addressed to maintain public trust. To complement its policy for the responsible use of AI in government, the Government released a new APS-wide Data Ethics Framework. This framework will guide APS agencies to safely and appropriately expand their use of data in new and innovative ways while building trust that data is being used ethically. Used together, the policy and framework provide practical advice so that agencies can use data and AI in a manner that meets community expectations.
The Government’s leadership in embracing AI while ensuring its safe, ethical and responsible use will be a blueprint for how the Government will continue to explore other new and emerging technologies.