Australia wants AI companies to prove their safety checks work, the way airlines and banks already have to
By Brett Gavaghan, Founder of Adaptd ·
On 8 October Assistant Minister Andrew Charlton outlined a systems-based approach to AI safety. National standards are due by the end of 2026, with legislation planned for 2027.
The short version
- Australia plans to make frontier AI companies prove they have working processes to find, test, report and manage the risks of their systems.
- Assistant Minister Andrew Charlton outlined it on 8 October 2026; national AI standards are due by the end of 2026 and legislation in 2027.
- Most businesses that use AI tools have nothing new to do yet, but asking vendors how they test and report problems is a sensible habit.
Australia's plan for regulating AI borrows from industries where a mistake is hard to undo. Nobody lets an airline self-certify that the wings are fine, and the government thinks the same logic applies to the companies building the most powerful AI.
What did the government announce?
The Australian Government outlined a systems-based approach to AI safety on 8 October, in a speech by Dr Andrew Charlton, Assistant Minister for Science, Technology and the Digital Economy, at a trust and safety event in Sydney.
Instead of a list of banned uses, companies would have to build and run a rigorous process for finding, testing, reporting on and managing the risks of their AI systems, and be held accountable for whether it works. The model is banking and aviation, where the focus is on preventing incidents rather than punishing them afterwards. Charlton argued voluntary safeguards fall short because the incentives reward speed and capability.
Who does it apply to, and when?
The approach is aimed at frontier AI developers, the companies building the most advanced models, including global AI companies operating in Australia.
National AI standards are due by the end of 2026, with legislation planned for 2027. The detail isn't written yet, and the Opposition said it supports the direction but that the details will matter. Which is the politest way of saying "show us the draft".
What should your business do about it?
Businesses that use AI tools, rather than build frontier models, don't have new obligations from this announcement.
My advice: borrow the idea anyway. When you choose an AI tool, ask the vendor how they test it, how they report problems and how quickly they'd tell you about an incident. Then do a small version yourself: know which AI tools touch customer data and who checks their output. You don't need an aviation-grade safety manual. A one-page list of what you use and who's watching it puts you ahead of most.
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