By https://www.abc.net.au/news/jake-evans/8463902
Publication Date: 2026-02-24 04:15:00
It took 15 months to narrow a field of 270 AI experts down to 12 nominees for an AI authority, costing nearly $200,000, before it was suddenly eliminated by the federal government.
The $21.6 million AI advisory panel was promised by former industry minister Ed Husic in 2024 after he appointed an interim panel of experts to begin work on “AI guardrails” that could ensure the technology’s safety.
But emails between the office of Industry Minister Tim Ayres, who replaced Mr. Husic, and his department show that the promised panel was disbanded just months after the department spent $188,000 and more than a year whittling down a list of experts to a shortlist of 12 nominees.
The shortlisted candidates were contacted by Mr Husic in February 2025 to collect the necessary “documents” for their appointments, but they heard little between that point and August, six months later, when the panel was officially dissolved.
Senator Ayres and Deputy Technology Minister Andrew Charlton announced in December that…
