Australia to regulate AI data centers

Australia will introduce legislation to regulate the water and electricity consumption of artificial intelligence (AI) data centers and strengthen copyright protections for creative industries, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced on Wednesday, according to AFP.

Speaking at the University of Sydney, Albanese outlined his government's AI policy agenda, aiming to ease public concerns about the rapidly expanding technology. He said AI should be developed and used in ways that serve Australia's national interest, CE Report quotes AGERPRES.

The prime minister said he will meet with the leaders of Australia's states and territories in August to discuss draft legislation that will be introduced next year to boost public trust in AI and strengthen national security.

Australia was the first country to impose restrictions on children's access to social media, but Albanese said AI presents an even more complex challenge that requires immediate action.

"If we stand back and do nothing, it will completely overtake us," he warned.

"Our great country can be much more than simply a data center for foreign AI products," Albanese said.

Reports emerged this week that U.S.-based AI company Anthropic, the developer of Claude, had lobbied for changes to Australia's copyright laws to make it easier to train AI models. Many Australian artists have urged the government to reject the proposals, arguing they would allow AI companies to use copyrighted works without compensation.

Albanese said Australia's creative content does not belong to anyone who wants to use it and insisted that "no company should use Australian books, music, artworks or news to create or train artificial intelligence without the creator's control."

"Any other approach is theft," he added.

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