<
https://www.theguardian.com/law/commentisfree/2026/sep/13/as-australia-faces-an-ai-generated-future-a-human-rights-act-is-needed-more-than-ever>
"As we hurtle towards a post-human future, the absence of a human rights act in
Australia will put us all at ever greater risk.
Human rights, which the Australian parliament has never managed to properly
legislate despite overwhelming public support, risks becoming a dimly
remembered artefact of another age at precisely the moment we need it most.
Artificial – authoritarian – intelligence, automated decision-making,
independent assessment tools and algorithms will shape the lives we live and
the public support we receive.
But human rights are not adequately legislated in Canberra – despite the
recommendation of a parliamentary committee, a huge petition and campaign and
effective laws in Victoria, Queensland and ACT. Now rights can easily be lost
in an environment shaped by opaque algorithms and computers that say no.
The government has been patting itself on the back with its proposed digital
duty of care – “my feed my way”, as the prime minister announced with
uncharacteristic pithiness. It aims to introduce limits on the algorithms
perfected by the global surveillance giants and give Australians the right to
help shape the information they receive (but not its accuracy).
Meanwhile, the government is racing to use similar tools to that determine how
much support people receive for essential services when they need them most.
Kate Chaney’s private member’s bill is the only sign of pushback.
Hundreds of thousands of public servants have been trained on how to use
artificial intelligence. Yet the information commissioner found that few
departments declared their use of AI.
GovAI is set to become something more than an announcement. Every department
and agency was required to appoint a chief AI officer by July.
Come December, the privacy statements of every department – and company – that
uses AI to make decisions that impact human beings will have to be updated to
note this.
But who reads privacy statements before clicking consent?"
Via Muse.
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
