Australia remains an AI laggard, new report warns

Up from just shy of $US300 million in 2020, this marked the biggest yearly jump since 2014, and put Australia ahead of South Korea, Hong Kong, Singapore, Spain and Portugal. However, Australia remained well behind France ($US1.55 billion), Canada ($US1.87 billion), Germany ($US1.98 billion), Israel ($US2.41 billion), the UK ($US4.65 billion), China ($US17.2 billion) and the US ($US52.8 billion). "The approach to AI within organisations remains very siloed, with considerations of AI ethics and governance seen as the province of tech and data teams. "If [consumer confidence in] AI is not a current priority it won't feature in corporate strategy considerations, and important future opportunities may be lost. "In the absence of better AI business and governance practices, AI adoption will continue to lag in Australian organisations, with long-term consequences for innovation, productivity and international competitiveness."