Academy of Science urges 2.5% levy on data centre and AI revenues

The Australian Academy of Science wants a 2.5 per cent levy on revenues earned by AI providers, hyperscalers and data centre operators, with the money going to national computing infrastructure and AI research. The idea sits in the Academy's submission to the Joint Select Committee on Artificial Intelligence, which is weighing the technology's opportunities and risks for Australia.

The Academy cautions that, absent investment, Australia could become home to the world's AI infrastructure and capture none of the benefit, as research, intellectual property and commercial income move overseas. It points to Australia's rural research and development levies as the model for the charge. Academy Fellow Sally-Ann Williams told the inquiry on the Academy's behalf that a levy would "turn demand from a resource hungry sector into national capability and potentially the most consequential productivity solution we have". Williams said Australia would "either be a creator of AI or merely a consumer who hosts infrastructure for others".

The submission observes that data centres make heavy use of Australian energy, water and land. The Academy also calls for facilities to meet the country's best-practice standards and to leave lasting community benefits.

The Academy supports compulsory AI safety requirements, which the committee's early advice has recommended. In its view, companies that train high-risk AI agents in Australia, or run them on Australian infrastructure, should have to demonstrate safety and disclose serious incidents. Dr Hayley Teasdale, the Academy's Head of Science Policy and Advice, said robust controls must remain in force even when developers intentionally weaken a model's safeguards for testing.

On computing, the Academy welcomed the committee's early advice calling for a coordinated national policy to encourage investment in domestic supercomputers. It has earlier put forward funding of $200 million a year for 10 years for high-performance computing and data. Teasdale said delay would cost the country, arguing that "Not investing now will not only stall productivity but lead to the Australian Government paying significantly more to access this infrastructure over the decades to come".