Husic’s $17 million AI déjà vu: Similar program, smaller budget
Minister Ed Husic has re-announced a $17 million AI adoption program from 2023 for SMEs, a plan that was already a cheaper version of a Coalition announcement.
At The Australian Financial Review‘s AI summit on Tuesday, Science Minister Ed Husic “announced” a $17 million dollar AI adoption program for SMEs. This was a program that had already been announced in December 2023. It also echoed similar plans from the Morrison government, but with a third of the budget.
A familiar AI plan
Minister Husic first announced the Australian Government’s Artificial Intelligence Adopt Program on December 8, 2023.
According to the minister’s office, $17 million would be set aside to establish up to five ‘AI Adopt’ centres. Each would target key priority areas of the National Reconstruction Fund.
The purpose of these centres is to help upskill SMEs to adopt and implement AI effectively and safely.
According to Minister Husic’s speech at the summit, this is now firmly four AI centres that will each receive between $3-5 million.
“Harnessing the power of AI will enhance productivity helping to crack one of the biggest challenges facing Australia,” Minister Husic said back in December.
“This network of centres will give businesses clear and direct advice on how to integrate AI into their work systems.”
While this wasn’t the first time Labor had “announced” this program, it also wasn’t the first federal government to do so.
The Coalition announced a similar program in the lead-up to the 2022 federal budget. The main difference was that $44 million was earmarked rather than $17 million.
The investment came under the Morrison government’s $124.1 million AI Action Plan, with the centres working with the CSIRO’s National Artificial Intelligence Centre (NAIC) — just like Labor’s Artificial Intelligence Adopt Program. Labor is also working closely with NAIC to deploy the $39.9 million set aside for the safe and responsible adoption of AI in the 2024-25 federal budget.
When the Liberal government announced its program, former Minister for Science Melissa Price said that roughly $11 million would be injected into each centre. And similar to Labor’s plans, applicants would need to be working in a key priority area for the former National Manufacturing Priorities or Digital Growth Priorities.
No unique funding for new National Robotics Strategy
Fortunately, there was a bit of actual news for the Australian tech sector, with Minister Husic also announcing the government’s National Robotics Strategy, which has been in the works since 2022.
No new funding will actually be injected into this strategy. Instead, investments will be sequestered from the National Reconstruction Fund, the Industry Growth Program and the $1.7 billion set aside in the federal budget for clean energy.
“Australia can and should be able to scale up more robotics businesses here, to help address some of our nation’s biggest challenges,” Minister Husic told the AFR.
Specific projects and investments attached to the National Robotics Strategy are yet to be announced.
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