QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE

Senator WONG (South Australia—Minister for Foreign Affairs and Leader of the Government in the Senate) (14:31): I have a few comments, before I get to data centres, on the introduction into your question, if I may, Senator Hanson-Young. The first point, which the Prime Minister has made, I've made and ministers have made, is the point that artificial intelligence will disrupt more, faster and more comprehensively than any previous technology, probably, in human history and that it has enormous potential benefits but also enormous risks.

In fact, last year, at the UN Security Council, I made a contribution about the need to create agreed guidelines and agreed parameters for the deployment of AI, particularly in the context of conflict, because of the risks that are inherent in that to human beings. In relation to your question, I think that the point is that this is technology that we cannot avert our eyes from.

It's technology for which we have to work out how we both keep Australians safe and spread the benefits. The Prime Minister, very early on, has signalled at the most senior level of government his intention to ensure that we approach this precisely with those two objectives in mind: how do we keep Australians safe, but also how do we ensure the benefits? He has made clear that we will be legislating Australian standards for AI which would ensure large data centres meet minimum requirements for energy, water and location and also ensure that we not only are technology takers but also have the capacity to engage constructively with this technology.

That is why incentivising AI trading— (Time expired) The PRESIDENT: Senator Hanson-Young, first supplementary?