The Albanesegovernmenthas announced a landmark proposal to regulate the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in Australia.Labor is considering anartificial intelligenceact which would enforce minimum standards on how AI is used across the economy and today released a voluntary safety standard.Minister for Industry and Science Ed Husic toldTodaythe government wants to control the rise of AI before it becomes a problem – and issued a warning for businesses not wanting to play ball.READ MORE:Former Labor leader Bill Shorten retires from politicsEd Husic said the government has been looking into what "high-risk" AI might be in Australia.(Today)"If it gets off the rails, it's a problem, so the Australian public wants a degree of confidence that the risks have been identified," Husic said."We've brought together a bunch of experts to help identify those risks and how to better manage them."We're releasing a voluntary standard, so from today on, businesses can better deal with AI."Husic said the proposal for stronger regulation needed to begin with probing into what "high-risk" AI is and the potential consequences of it being used widely in Australia.He explained an example of this could be companies using AI to violate the privacy of Australians, particularly children."For example, if AI has been used to hire and fire people or facial recognition in public places or shopping centres, AI that might be used with kids as well," he said."We reckon there are high-risk areas where the public would want to know."READ MORE:'What you see behind us is evil': Boy, 14, charged with murder over school massacreThe MP issued a warning for businesses who may not want to play ball.(Today)Husic could not confirm how or if businesses using this "high-risk" AI would be punished if regulations are put in place.He said while the current standard may be voluntary, businesses should begin to adopt these practices to avoid using AI the "wrong" way."Ultimately the more compulsory or mandatory guardrails being put in place, they do send a pretty clear signal about what's right and what's wrong," he said."And businesses should start taking those cues and starting to behave better when it comes around."He added: "This is nothing different to what if we take a medicine or we use a car or a plane, we expect we place a lot of trust, and that trust comes from a strong basis of regulation."READ MORE:Banks 'profiteering' with $212 billion gouge, union leader saysAI is a booming industry in Australia.(Getty)The government used AI experts to inform theProposals Paper for Introducing Mandatory Guardrails for AI in High-Risk Settings, which proposed 10 mandatory standards for high-risk AI.The Voluntary AI Safety Standard is in place as of today to help Australian businesses implement best practice.It's expected the standard will give business owners and businesses some certainty ahead of mandatory guardrails.The European Union, Japan, Singapore and the US already have similar standards in place.