AI Adoption: Built on trust, people, and tools
The APS AI Plan introduces binding governance requirements — Chief AI Officers, impact assessments, and a high-risk review committee — that all Commonwealth agencies must now act on.
Key points
- The APS AI Plan launches with three pillars — Trust, People, and Tools — as a joint DTA, Finance, and APSC initiative.
- Agencies must appoint Chief AI Officers, designate accountable officers per use case, and maintain internal AI registers.
- A new AI Review Committee managed by DTA will provide cross-government scrutiny of high-risk AI use cases.
Summary
The Australian Government has released the AI Plan for the Australian Public Service, a joint initiative from DTA, the Department of Finance, and APSC. The Plan establishes three pillars — Trust, People, and Tools — and introduces a suite of concrete governance mechanisms: mandatory Chief AI Officer appointments, accountable officer designations for each AI use case, internal AI registers, mandatory AI impact assessments, and a new DTA-managed AI Review Committee to scrutinise high-risk deployments. A central AI Delivery and Enablement (AIDE) function will be established within Finance to accelerate safe adoption. Minister Gallagher framed the Plan as complementary to responsible use, not a workforce replacement strategy.
Implications for Australian agencies
- Implement Agencies could begin appointing a Chief AI Officer and establishing internal AI use case registers and accountable officer designations as required by the Plan.
- Implement Risk and governance teams could prepare AI impact assessment processes ahead of upcoming updates to the Policy for the Responsible Use of AI in Government.
- Monitor Agencies with high-risk AI use cases could monitor DTA's AI Review Committee establishment and understand referral criteria and submission expectations.
Implications are AI-generated. Starting points, not advice.
"AI Adoption: Built on trust, people, and tools" Source: DTA – Media Releases Published: 20 November 2025 URL: https://www.dta.gov.au/articles/ai-adoption-built-trust-people-and-tools The Australian Government has released the AI Plan for the Australian Public Service, a joint initiative from DTA, the Department of Finance, and APSC. The Plan establishes three pillars — Trust, People, and Tools — and introduces a suite of concrete governance mechanisms: mandatory Chief AI Officer appointments, accountable officer designations for each AI use case, internal AI registers, mandatory AI impact assessments, and a new DTA-managed AI Review Committee to scrutinise high-risk deployments. A central AI Delivery and Enablement (AIDE) function will be established within Finance to accelerate safe adoption. Minister Gallagher framed the Plan as complementary to responsible use, not a workforce replacement strategy. Implications for Australian agencies: - [Implement] Agencies could begin appointing a Chief AI Officer and establishing internal AI use case registers and accountable officer designations as required by the Plan. - [Implement] Risk and governance teams could prepare AI impact assessment processes ahead of upcoming updates to the Policy for the Responsible Use of AI in Government. - [Monitor] Agencies with high-risk AI use cases could monitor DTA's AI Review Committee establishment and understand referral criteria and submission expectations. Retrieved from SIMS, 18 May 2026.