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Nobel Prize winners, AI scientists, and CEOs of leading AI companies agree:
mitigating AI risks must be a global priority.
AI has the potential to boost productivity and tackle national challenges - but without strong governance, advanced AI systems could compromise Australians' interest for generations.
To protect our future, the Australian Government must take concrete, credible and binding action to address these societal-scale risks.
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Q&A
YOUR QUICK GUIDE TO AI
Q: What does “advanced AI” mean?
A: Specialised AI systems - such as those advancing science and medicine - can boost growth, innovation, and public services.
Leading AI labs are now racing towards what they refer to as “transformative AI”, “Artificial General Intelligence”, or even “Artificial Super Intelligence”. By “advanced AI”, we mean these increasingly powerful, general-purpose systems in whatever form they take.
Q: Where did the Nobel Prize winners, AI scientists, and CEOs say this?
A: Global AI experts have been sounding the alarm since at least May 2023. Australian AI experts have been joining the global call since July 2023. These warnings have only grown louder as powerful AI systems move closer to reality.
Q: What kinds of actions could Australia take?
A: Australia’s actions must evolve as AI risks evolve. They must be concrete, credible, and binding, and targeted at the societal-scale risks posed by advanced AI.
In the immediate term, the Government should:
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Establish an Australian AI Safety Institute
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Introduce an AI Act setting safety and transparency standards for AI developers and deployers
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Provide targeted support for families and young Australians
Australia should also play a strong role in international governance, helping countries agree on shared safety standards and avoiding AI risks, including those posed by dangerous races between nations and companies.
Further recommendations are outlined in “AI and the next generation national wake-up call”.
Q: What do you mean by future generations?
A: Advanced AI is already reshaping life for today’s Australians, and young people are especially vulnerable. Its development will affect everyone, yet it is advancing without a democratic mandate. AI is happening to us.
Like past choices such as greenhouse gas emissions, introduced species, nuclear testing, microplastics, and “forever chemicals”, our decisions on AI will echo for decades. Future generations will live with the consequences of how we manage AI today, for better or for worse.