A new research centre is set to tackle the challenges of AI adoption, supporting the Federal Government’s efforts to create safe and responsible AI use.
Minister for Industry and Science, Ed Husic, has officially launched the Adelaide-based Responsible AI Research Centre (RAIR), working with the South Australian Government.
“We know AI can be hugely helpful for Australian businesses, but the benefits of AI can only be realised when it can be trusted,” said Husic.
“AI and automation could generate between $170- $600 billion each year towards Australia’s GDP by 2030, so it’s crucial that local businesses can rely on the latest research to use AI safely.”
The RAIR will embark on research that has the potential to ensure AI implementation addresses misinformation risks, considers diverse perspectives and can explain its actions.
Backed with an initial $20 million combined investment from CSIRO, the South Australian Government and University of Adelaide, RAIR will see experts from Australia’s national science agency and The University of Adelaide join forces.
Focussing on building foundational AI models and better understanding how AI works, the RAIR Centre will explore four key themes:
- Tackling misinformation: developing methods that enable attribution of trusted data sources to AI-generated content to avoid misinformation and misuse.
- Safe AI in the Real World: exploring the foundational science questions that underpin how AI interacts with the physical world, linking to areas including robotics.
- Diverse AI: developing AI systems that can accurately assess their own knowledge limitations and reliably express uncertainty, helping to reduce AI hallucinations.
- AI that can explain its actions: developing AI that understands cause-and-effect relationships, beyond correlations, particularly in complex and dynamic environments.
The RAIR Centre will be located at Adelaide’s Lot Fourteen, backed with world-leading expertise from CSIRO’s data and digital specialist arm, Data61 and The University of Adelaide’s Australian Institute for Machine Learning (AIML).
The RAIR Centre is expected to be fully operational in early 2025.
