Spread the benefits

Every Australian should be able to benefit from AI, regardless of age, location or gender. Achieving this outcome requires a broad approach to building capability across all workplaces, including in not-for-profits, universities, schools, TAFEs and community organisations. It must elevate suburban and regional voices and ensure that local businesses and communities are not left behind.

We need to give particular consideration to cohorts already disadvantaged by digital and economic gaps, as well as those in roles at higher risk of AI and automation-driven disruption. This includes First Nations people, women, people with disability and remote communities. 

Beyond the current labour force, AI will also shape opportunities for jobseekers and those engaged in unpaid work. Ensuring these groups share in AI-driven improvements to services and support, while addressing risks of exclusion, is essential.

AI adoption has the potential to improve business productivity and deliver better wages, job satisfaction and stability for workers. Adoption can also enhance public services through faster processing, personalised support and stronger protections. To realise these benefits, we need to ensure workplace rights are fit for purpose. Australia must support digital and AI skills uplift across all levels of the education pipeline, improve connectivity in remote areas, and build a resilient workforce that can adapt to technological change.

Action 4: Scale AI adoption

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are the backbone of Australia’s economy – supporting innovation, creating jobs, and contributing significantly to national productivity. Supporting SMEs to adopt AI is essential to ensure they remain competitive, efficient, and well-positioned to seize emerging market opportunities in an increasingly digital landscape. Businesses need to optimise operations and encourage responsible AI innovation, supported by high-quality, trusted data.

AI adoption will be vital for business success

Many Australian consumers and businesses are fast, early adopters of new AI technologies. Over one third of SMEs have adopted AI (NAIC 2025) and, after adjusting for population size, Australia ranks third globally for consumer use of Claude, a popular AI tool (Appel et al 2025).

However, current adoption rates show a clear regional–metro divide: only 29% of regional organisations in Australia are adopting AI compared to 40% in metropolitan areas. Regional businesses also have a higher proportion (26%) that are not aware of AI opportunities (Fifth Quadrant 2025). Addressing this gap is critical to ensure inclusive growth and equal access to AI benefits, as existing digital divides exacerbate barriers to AI adoption. Notably, around 40% of First Nations people, and one in 5 Australians broadly remain digitally excluded. This highlights the urgency of closing these gaps (Australian Digital Inclusion Index 2025).

The National AI Centre

The National AI Centre (NAIC) is the government’s lead body supporting industry to unlock the economic benefits of AI. The NAIC provides tailored guidance and direct engagement to help SMEs, not-for-profits, social enterprises and First Nations businesses adopt AI responsibly. 

The government has invested $17 million in the AI Adopt Program, which provides tailored assistance for SMEs implementing AI. To further align and strengthen government support for industry adoption, we will bring this program into the NAIC’s remit.

Practical support for AI adoption

The government is already reducing barriers and building confidence through practical support:

• Guiding safe AI adoption: The NAIC released the Guidance for AI Adoption (NAIC 2025) on 21 October 2025 to support effective adoption practices by business. The guidance includes a suite of practical resources to make AI adoption widely accessible, including editable AI policy templates. NAIC resources have been simplified in partnership with business.gov.au, ensuring even the smallest organisations can benefit.
• Supporting not-for-profits: A collaboration between NAIC and Infoxchange will see the creation of tailored AI adoption resources and templates for the non-profit sector, as well as new training and advisory services.
• Providing tailored support: The AI Adopt Program offers SMEs consultations, training and tools to support responsible AI development and use nationwide. For Australian small businesses, the Digital Solutions Program also provides tailored advice on how to adopt digital tools including AI capabilities to increase business productivity.
• Boosting First Nations digital inclusion: The First Nations Digital Support Hub and Network of Digital Mentors will enhance digital skills and connectivity.

Data relating to First Nations Peoples, their lands, and knowledge is subject to Indigenous Data Sovereignty. In any actions taken relating to this plan, the Australian Government is committed to upholding principles of the Framework for Governance of Indigenous Data (NIAA 2024) ensuring that First Nations communities have control over the collection, access, use, and sharing of their data.

Action 5: Support and train Australians 

AI adoption could bring significant changes to Australia’s labour market, creating major benefits if managed fairly and inclusively. Workers and those seeking to enter the workforce must be at the centre of this transition. 

The government is supporting lifelong learning through skills and training, embedding digital literacy across education, and addressing digital literacy gaps to prevent deepening inequalities. Industry, employers and unions will play a critical role ensuring that workers are prepared for and benefit from AI-driven shifts. Where AI reshapes tasks rather than entire jobs (Jobs and Skills Australia 2025), reskilling, career support, and workforce mobility will be essential. Employers should support workers to access training and skills development in AI technologies. This is particularly important for groups at higher risk of disruption, including women, First Nations people, mature-aged workers, people with disability, and those in regional areas. Workers’ voices and union engagement must guide decisions on technology adoption to ensure fairness and protect rights. The government will ensure that workers’ rights are fit for purpose to deliver these outcomes.

AI tools used in workplaces, from task allocation to hiring, can boost productivity but also pose risks like surveillance, bias, discrimination in rostering, and reduced autonomy. To be effective in practice, deploying these technologies should involve meaningful consultation with workers, including into the design of AI systems. Deployment should protect workers’ privacy and ensure they are working in a safe environment, including addressing potential psychosocial risks. It is important that there is transparency with affected workers about how algorithmic tools are used to manage work performance, work standards or engineered standards, including the data used. 

Australia faces both challenges and opportunities in preparing workers with the skills needed for future industries, particularly in digital skills and AI. Industry, government, and the skills and education sectors all have a vital role in equipping students and the workforce to seize the opportunities AI presents. Broad AI skills and credentials are essential across the workforce. Specialised AI expertise is critical to ensure Australia has the advanced technical capability required for AI development and deployment (Jobs and Skills Australia 2025).

Action to support Australian workers

The Australian Government is taking early action to build a workforce that can thrive in an AI-enabled economy. Initiatives are underway to boost digital skills, expand training access, and grow an inclusive pipeline of AI-ready workers. These include:

• The National Skills Agreement (NSA) is about ensuring the national vocational education and training (VET) sector provides high-quality, responsive and accessible education and training. The NSA will boost productivity, deliver national priorities and support Australians to obtain the skills and capabilities they need to prosper. Ensuring Australia’s digital and technological capability is an agreed national priority under the NSA.
• The Future Skills Organisation ‘FSO Skills Accelerator – AI’ brings together the VET sector and industry to connect, collaborate, and share best practices. This program expands access to AI skills for VET learners, educators, and administrators. It aims to mobilise the VET system to upskill teachers and trainers, provide training to learners, and collaborate with training providers. The long-term goal is to ensure a sustainable approach to AI skills development across the national skills and training system.
• Digital Knowledge Exchange is a national collaboration platform, developed and coordinated by FSO. The platform facilitates the sharing of knowledge and scaling of best practice digital skills and training initiatives across state and territory governments.
• Developing future AI talent: The Next Generation Graduates Program is building a pipeline of highly skilled professionals in AI and emerging technologies through industry-linked postgraduate scholarships.
• Aligning workforce development with industry needs: Jobs and Skills Councils (JSC) work in partnership with industry, government and training providers to identify sector-specific AI ‑related skills gaps and develop responses, including nationally accredited training products.
• Providing labour market insights: Jobs and Skills Australia provides evidence‑based analysis of labour market trends and skills needs. This includes studies on how generative AI is reshaping job roles and informing workforce planning.
• Improving AI and digital skills: TAFEs deliver digital and AI training through targeted initiatives. The Institute of Applied Technology offers several AI microcredential courses, such as the Responsible AI microcredential. These courses have attracted more than 150,000 enrolments to date.
• Building a skilled workforce for priority sectors: The Key Apprenticeship Program supports apprenticeships in priority sectors to build a pipeline of skilled workers. This includes in sectors required for AI infrastructure, such as clean energy.
• Responsible AI skills partnerships with professional associations and unions: NAIC will continue to engage with key professional associations to ensure AI and responsible AI learning are available through their membership networks.
• Reviewing Work Health and Safety laws: Safe Work Australia have received feedback and submissions through the best practice review relating to AI and included a section on the potential impact of AI in the initial discussion paper for the review. 

Building an AI-ready workforce

To build an inclusive AI-ready workforce, the government will work to help Australians gain the skills needed to thrive in an AI-enabled economy. Employers should support workers to access training and skills development in AI technologies. Guided by Jobs and Skills Australia’s Generative AI Capacity Study (August 2025), actions led by government and the Jobs and Skills Councils, alongside unions and employers, will support this effort. The Department of Education and the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations will also explore ways to equip learners with the skills and credentials to participate in an AI-driven workforce and ensure a strong pipeline of AI‑ready school leavers and graduates. 

FSO plays a critical role in ensuring the skills and training system is responsive to the digital and AI skills needs of the future. It will continue to:

• undertake workforce planning that identifies the digital and AI skills needs and strategies that support and respond to the workforce challenges.
• develop generalist and specialist digital and AI units of competency across Australian Qualifications Framework levels.
• research barriers to AI adoption for SMEs and diverse worker cohorts.

Workers and unions must have a strong voice in how AI is adopted across workplaces. The government will work with unions and industry representatives to ensure workplaces introduce AI technologies transparently, safely, and in ways that allow workers to share in the benefits. This includes embedding foundational digital literacy and ensuring that workplace relations settings promote fair, balanced, and collaborative environments. It also includes meaningful consultation and co-design with workers to improve outcomes of AI systems in the workplace. 

This effort will include a focus on:

• enabling an AI-ready workforce by ensuring Australians have the employability, skills, training and education to thrive in an AI-enabled economy and meet Australia’s workforce needs.
• the cooperative adoption of AI technologies in the workplace, so that new technologies are safely and transparently introduced allowing for workers to share the benefits.
• collaboration with employers and workers to navigate AI’s effect on the labour market, including fostering worker adaptation to changing roles and future work opportunities.
• progressing an analysis of workplace relations regulations frameworks with a focus on making sure settings are responsive to the risks of AI and ensure they continue to create fair, safe and cooperative workplaces.

Every Australian can benefit from AI

A focus on inclusion will ensure all Australians, including First Nations peoples, women, people with disability, and regional communities, can benefit from future economic growth. In line with the National Agreement on Closing the Gap (Joint Council on Closing the Gap 2020), the government is committed to carrying out actions in this plan, including to support and train Australians, in genuine partnership with First Nations communities. This includes supporting community-led and community-controlled approaches to digital skills and workforce development, and the governance of Indigenous data as it relates to AI in the workplace. 

Reducing the gender gap in technology and addressing skills shortages, especially to bridge gendered differences, will continue to be a priority for Australia, in line with the objectives of the government’s Working for Women: A Strategy for Gender Equality (Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet 2024) and the National Skills Agreement.

Action 6: Improve public services

AI can improve the delivery of public services in Australia, making our services more effective, efficient, accessible and responsive to the needs of Australians. With appropriate human oversight, AI can enhance the capabilities of government agencies and public servants and enable them to operate more efficiently. By leading the way in adopting AI transparently and responsible, the government can build public trust in the technology and ensure its benefits are shared widely across society. 

AI can drive better services 

AI is already having a positive impact in healthcare. For example, combined with the National Lung Cancer Screening Program (NLCSP), AI triage could lift lung cancer detections at stage 1 from 16% to 64% (Tech Council of Australia 2025). In education, AI offers opportunities to reduce teacher workloads and improve student outcomes.

The Australian Government is taking practical steps to integrate AI into public services, making them more efficient, accessible, and responsive. The following actions are already underway:

• Embedding AI in government operations: The GovAI platform offers secure, whole-of-government tools that streamline processes and enable more personalised, connected services.
• Piloting generative AI in schools: States and territories are funded to trial GenAI, reducing workloads for teachers and exploring safe classroom use. The Australian Framework for Generative AI in Schools (Department of Education 2023) supports the responsible and ethical use of GenAI tools.
• Lifting public service capability: The Data and Digital Government Strategy (Digital Transformation Agency 2023) strengthens APS digital and data skills, leveraging AI for seamless, secure, inclusive services.
• Providing trusted environmental data for AI: Through Geoscience Australia’s Earth Observation Program and the Australia-United States Partnership in Landsat Next, over $440 million will be invested to enable access to next generation satellite missions. These missions include work with global space agencies on new standards for verification of Earth Observation data for AI applications in sectors like agriculture and mining. 

The Australian Government is working to expand the safe and responsible use of AI to all government agencies to help create consistent, high-quality services for people. The government aims to lead by example, lifting the productivity of the public sector and providing better job satisfaction. 

The Australian Government will use AI to better serve the public

The AI Plan for the Australian Public Service (APS) was released on 12 November 2025. The plan will improve government service delivery, policy outcomes, efficiency and productivity through substantially increasing the use of AI in government. Every public servant will have the training and guidance required to use generative AI safely and responsibly, alongside secure access to generative AI tools. Every agency will have a Chief AI Officer to drive adoption, with AI use tracked and reported on. 

The government is also focused on a consistent legal framework for supporting government use of automated decision making (which may include AI) in service delivery to the Australian public. This includes ensuring that human decision makers remain accountable for key decisions made with the assistance of AI tools.

The Australian Government has developed the Framework for Governance of Indigenous Data (NIAA 2024) which guides its use of AI systems with First Nations data in public services. This recommends that Indigenous communities are engaged on the collection, access, use and sharing of data, in partnership and with respect for cultural protocols and collective rights.

To support the provision of efficient and accessible services, the Attorney-General’s Department is also considering options to harness AI to improve access to justice and reduce the cost of legal services to vulnerable and low-income Australians. 

Building on Actions 4–6: What’s next

The government is committed to ensuring no one is held back and no one is left behind as AI technologies become widespread across the economy. 

To ensure the widespread benefits of AI across Australia, it will be crucial to improve digital access and inclusion for all communities, particularly in regional and remote areas. Addressing gaps in digital literacy will enable Australians to confidently navigate and participate in an increasingly AI-driven society. This will require strategic investment in connectivity and collaborative efforts from government, industry, civil society and local stakeholders, ensuring that no one falls behind as technology evolves.

Beyond access and literacy, supporting SMEs to overcome resource limits and upskill their workforce will foster innovation and economic growth. As labour market dynamics shift with the adoption of AI, proactive measures – such as reskilling programs and flexible career pathways – will help workers adapt and thrive. In the Australian Public Service, the government’s AI Plan for the APS will address barriers like risk aversion, long-term contracts and institutional inertia. By tackling these challenges together, Australia can spread the benefits of AI more equitably and ensure a resilient future for all Australians.