Weekly Digest
Week of 3 Nov 2025
This week at a glance
This week's digest centres on a cluster of Australian AI policy developments with direct implications for governance practitioners. Treasury's finding that the Australian Consumer Law is broadly adequate for AI — without recommending new AI-specific legislation — signals that agencies should focus compliance attention on existing frameworks rather than anticipating standalone AI law in the near term. At the same time, the eSafety Commissioner's registration of mandatory industry codes targeting AI chatbots and companion services, taking effect March 2026, represents a concrete regulatory milestone worth tracking for agencies deploying or procuring conversational AI tools. Rounding out the domestic picture, new Roy Morgan polling on declining public trust in AI and Australia's slide in global digital competitiveness rankings add context for practitioners advising on stakeholder engagement and the pace of AI adoption strategies.
Headlines
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AI Policy and Governance Newsletter — October/November 2025
Good Ancestors' October/November 2025 newsletter covers several significant Australian and international AI policy developments. In Australia, new polling shows 65% of Australians believe AI creates more problems than it solves; Treasury's ACL review concluded existing consumer law is broadly adequate for AI; the eSafety Commissioner registered mandatory safety codes for AI chatbot platforms effective March 2026; and Australia fell to 23rd in the IMD World Digital Competitiveness Ranking, with its AI policy ranking dropping sharply. The pending National AI Plan is flagged as the key near-term policy vehicle, with Minister Ayres signalling an 'expansive' strategy but leaving ethical obligations primarily with businesses. Internationally, the newsletter covers the Statement on Superintelligence, UN-level fractures over AI governance, California's SB 53, the UK AI Bill, and US bipartisan AI risk legislation. The newsletter also highlights Australian academic and think-tank reports on regulatory frameworks, workforce impacts, legal zero-days, and OpenAI's preparedness framework.
Key points
- Good Ancestors' October/November 2025 newsletter covers a dense cluster of Australian and international AI policy developments.
- Key Australian threads include Treasury's light-touch ACL review, eSafety's new AI chatbot codes, and the pending National AI Plan.
- Australia's IMD digital competitiveness ranking fell from 15th to 23rd, with its AI laws ranking dropping from 8th to 34th in one year.
Implications
- Monitor Policy teams tracking the National AI Plan could monitor Minister Ayres' framing closely, particularly the tension between 'expansive' strategy and downstream-only liability signals.
- Consider Agencies engaged in AI governance or risk assurance may want to consider the eSafety Commissioner's chatbot codes as a worked example of how existing regulators can act within their remit ahead of any AI Act.
- Consider Strategy and digital teams could consider Australia's IMD competitiveness decline as evidence when making the case internally for clear AI governance frameworks rather than regulatory deferral.
Implications are AI-generated. Starting points, not advice — see methodology for how they're framed.