Government announces A$10 million investment in AI

The Australian government announced Monday (23 November) that it was making a A$10 million investment in artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities to give Australia an edge across all of Defence’s domains. Minister for Defence Industry Melissa Price announced the new initiative which will support Australian industry to develop new AI applications across Defence’s Information and Cyber, Maritime, Air, Space, and Land domains. Price said the initiative was part of a A$32 million boost to Australian industry over the next two years through the Defence Innovation Hub, as part of the government’s Defence COVID-19 economic recovery package. “AI is a critical enabling technology which can deliver a decisive Defence advantage,” Price said. “This initiative provides new opportunities for Australia’s AI sector to partner with Defence. Genuine partnerships between Defence and Australian industry allows us to develop globally competitive AI capabilities and builds a national defence industry base. Through this initiative, we are building a strong Australian defence industry with an ability to design and integrate AI technology into Defence’s force structure.” The Defence Innovation Hub will partner with the Defence AI Centre to set two challenges to industry: Using Intelligence Mission data to improve situational awareness in the battlefield, and Using intelligent Virtual Reality to enhance simulation, modelling and training. Proposals to these challenges can be submitted until 11 February 2021. More information is available here. For Editorial Inquiries Contact: Editor Kym Bergmann at [email protected] For Advertising Inquiries Contact: Director of Sales Graham Joss at [email protected]