Australian businesses view AI as ‘potential threat’, research reveals
Australian businesses are largely holding back on adopting AI, with just 5 per cent of business leaders in the Asia-Pacific region using it significantly, according to BDO.
BDO’s 2024 Global Risk Landscape Report has revealed that 32 per cent of Asia-Pacific business leaders say the evolution of AI poses a threat to their organisations, with just 5 per cent of businesses in the region engaged in significant use of AI for risk management.
In contrast, 17 per cent of business leaders in the Middle East reported significant use of AI for risk management.
The report found that around 25 per cent of APAC leaders believe the evolution of AI will make it more difficult to secure their organisations against cyber attacks.
BDO Australia national leader for risk advisory, Marita Corbett, said that in Australia, the main challenge holding businesses back from embracing AI is a skills shortage, limiting the ability to properly utilise the technology.
“The integration of AI is more than just a tech person writing code. The actual integration is where the skills are wanting. It’s not just a skill, it’s the end-to-end lifecycle of AI and that integrated skill set,” Corbett said.
Another impediment is Australia’s strong worker protection commitments and concerns that AI could oust humans from the workforce and increase unemployment, according to BDO.
“In Australia, there are schools of thought that AI will free people up to do valuable work. But there is a fear that AI will take away some jobs, so there’s an industrial relations element to that,” Corbett said.
Corbett warned that Australia is also a laggard when it comes to adopting innovations and actively seeks to avoid the costs and risks associated with being first adopters.
“There is a conservative element at play, a willingness to let others do the initial investment and research and learn from them,” she said.
“There’s cultural conservatism around relying on AI to make decisions when it’s still a little bit too unfounded.”
BDO noted that a survey from Ready Research and the University of Queensland published in March found that 80 per cent of Australians believe AI risk is a global priority on par with pandemics and nuclear war.
Corbett said that a conservative approach to embracing the technology in Australia has been prevalent for a long time and may end up seeing local businesses lagging behind the rest of the world.
“While AI may pose unknown risks, an excessively timid approach may itself be a risk if competitors are moving ahead with AI adoption faster,” she said.
