South Australian treasurer Stephen Mullighan | Australian Markets

The coming AI tidal wave is starting to hit into Australia’s public sector, with the South Australian authorities saying a new $28m program to embed the technological revolution into policing, healthcare, finance and law.

Treasurer Stephen Mullighan delivered the shock allocation within the state’s 2025-26 price range, with the funding designed to “maximise on the benefits and promote growing the use of AI applications across the South Australian public sector”.

The price range measures declare this system will initially prioritise policing and healthcare with a set of “proof of value trials”.

“Through targeted proof of value trials in priority areas such as health care and policing, this funding will provide support for broad applications across government and allow multiple use cases to be developed on trusted foundational technologies, with appropriate governance and alignment to the investment principles of the digital investment fund,” the doc says.

“The health sector is a priority for funding consideration, as global evidence shows that integrating AI in specific areas of healthcare can reduce costs and improve operational efficiency, allowing healthcare professionals to spend more time on clinical care.”

In policing, this system will look to reinforce effectivity and security for officers.

“AI can be used to support real-time decision making to help allocate resources effectively, increase officer and public safety and reduce administrative burden on officers, freeing up time for more value-added work,” the doc states.

“Other areas considered for priority funding may include allied health, social work and legal and financial areas of the public sector.”

The program, which sits within the federal government’s broader digital investment fund, is funded from 2025-26 via to 2028-29, with an estimated $4.6m in yearly working bills and $2.4m in yearly investing bills.

It is predicted to create 5 new ongoing full time jobs over the period.

Australian Institute of Machine Learning institute supervisor Dr Kathy Nicholson mentioned the federal government’s AI push was not about changing public servants.

“What this program is really about is upskilling and adopting AI into government service,” she mentioned.

“We all know how overworked everyone is. There are so many repetitive processes in so many jobs and areas and the intention of this funding is in the first instance to look at healthcare, policing, and some of those pain points in government areas and look at ways they can test AI systems to create efficiencies.

“My understanding is they are doing this in a slow, methodical way to make sure there are good guardrails in place.”

Dr Nicholson mentioned with out AI effectivity drives, authorities budgets may “blow out”.

“Everyone, be they public servants, or be they non public servants, is going to have to learn how to use AI to be more efficient in their work,” she mentioned.

“This is just about upskilling, creating the tools so that everybody can use them, and bringing the public service along on a journey that is happening.

“If they don’t adopt it in the public service, what we are going to see will be blow outs in budgets.”

Nationwide, a number of jurisdictions are grappling with the promise and peril of AI.

In February this yr, Queensland Information Commissioner Joanne Kummrow warned taking a “wait and see” method to AI risked the public sector “falling behind understanding and responsibly engaging with its capabilities and challenges”.

“While AI shows promise as a powerful tool capable of delivering improved public services, agencies need to take the ‘right path’ by mitigating privacy and security risks and ensuring its ethical and transparent use, rather than taking the ‘fast lane’ without due regard to the necessary guard rails and protection of citizens’ personal information,” she posted to the web site of the Office of the Information Commissioner.

The NSW authorities, in the meantime, funnelled more than $2.7m in grants to 16 councils in mid 2024 to trial AI in native planning systems.

The trials have been designed to “improve the development application process for all users, including homeowners, councils and developers”.

Outside of authorities, South Australia may also deploy AI to develop a fuller image of its mineral wealth, with a explicit give attention to copper manufacturing within the giant Gawler Craton, which sprawls throughout the central portion of the state.