National AI Plan: Labor announces $29.9m funding for AI Safety Institute

The newly created AI Safety Institute will be given nearly $30m in funding to investigate whether Australia needs stronger laws to prevent AI-facilitated child abuse.

Industry, Innovation and Science Minister Tim Ayres will release the National AI Plan on December 2. Picture: Martin Ollman

Labor will consider further laws to prevent the dissemination of child abuse material, with the safeguarding Australia from harm a key tenant of the National AI Plan.

The document’s launch on Tuesday is backed by a $29.9m funding commitment to the newly-announced AI Safety Institute, which will begin operations from early 2026.

The body will be tasked to monitor and advise on the risks of harms posed by the emerging technology, and has been tasked with canvasing new laws to reduce AI-facilitated abuse.

“The government is monitoring the development and deployment of AI and will respond to challenges as they arise, and as our understanding of the strengths and limitations of AI evolves,” the plan reads.

It noted that while approaches must promote “flexibility” and should be “practical and risk-based,” AI-enabled crime and abuse “disproportionately impacts women and girls”.

The 37-page plan lists three goals for Australia’s AI transformation, and says it must capture opportunities like investment into data centres, and ensure the benefits are spread across the economy, while also preventing the risks and harms.

To date Labor has blocked several nudify apps and created criminal offences for the distribution of deepfake sexual material, which carries a maximum jail sentence of six years.

The National AI Plan will outline how Australia can take avantage of the AI revolution, and ensure its benefits are economy-wide, while also mitigating risks posed by the new technology. Picture: Martin Ollman

A blog post from the office of the eSafety commissioner from June this year also urged proactive action to ensure generative AI isn’t exploited to create child sexual abuse material, stating it “is not a hypothetical risk”.

It said the content runs the risk of “constantly resurfacing and causing psychological trauma to victims who may never even be aware of its existence until it’s too late”.

“Synthetic versions of CSEA also contribute to a culture that diminishes the seriousness of CSEA and its harmful impacts.”

Industry, Innovation and Science Minister Tim Ayres, who will address the Lowy Institute in Sydney on Tuesday said the aim of the plan was to ensure “technology serves Australians, not the other way around”.

“As the technology continues to evolve, we will continue to refine and strengthen this plan to seize new opportunities and act decisively to keep Australians safe,” he said.

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Originally published as National AI Plan: Labor announces $29.9m funding for AI Safety Institute