Senate debates
Tuesday, 3 March 2026
Questions without Notice: Additional Answers
Artificial Intelligence
3:06 pm
Tim Ayres (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Industry and Innovation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
I undertook to Senator Lambie, during question time, to come back on data protections. I can't give an answer for the whole of government, because it depends upon the software that different departments use. For my department, artificial intelligence tools for use with regard to inquiries would be Copilot or, for large-scale consultations, a purpose-built consultation summarisation tool that's built on Microsoft products. My department is subject to the whole-of-government agreement with Microsoft, which states that all data is stored within Australia.