Experts Warn Australia Against Settling for Handshakes in AI Data Centre Negotiations
The Australian Financial Review
READ
Details
- Date Published
- 2 Apr 2026
- Priority Score
- 4
- Australian
- Yes
- Created
- 2 Apr 2026, 06:00 am
Description
Every major artificial intelligence firm wants our land and grid. We should negotiate for enforceable commitments rather than non-binding memorandums.
Summary
This analysis argues that Australia's current approach to AI governance relies too heavily on non-binding memorandums of understanding rather than enforceable regulatory frameworks. By granting major frontier AI labs like Anthropic access to national resources without strict conditions, the government may be bypassing critical safety and security oversight necessary to manage catastrophic AI risks. The article emphasizes that Australia has significant leverage due to its land and energy resources and should use this to demand concrete commitments to AI safety and democratic alignment. Such a shift is essential for establishing robust guardrails as frontier AI capabilities continue to expand and influence national security.
Body
TechnologyAIPrint articleApr 2, 2026 – 9.00amDario Amodei spent Wednesday in Canberra signing the first memorandum of understanding under the National AI Plan with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, meeting Treasurer Jim Chalmers, and telling MPs at the Anthropic Futures Forum that democracies must keep the military and technological edge over autocracies. Yet what Australia got was still a non-binding handshake.Every major AI company in the world wants to build in Australia right now. They need our land, our grid, our political stability, and our geography. We should be negotiating like we know it. Instead, we are settling for handshakes.Loading...SaveLog in or Subscribe to save articleShareCopy linkCopiedEmailLinkedInTwitterFacebookCopy linkCopiedShare via...Gift this articleSubscribe to gift this articleGift 5 articles to anyone you choose each month when you subscribe.Subscribe nowAlready a subscriber? LoginLicense articleFollow the topics, people and companies that matter to you.Find out moreRead MoreAIOpinionCanberraAnthropicSingaporeUSAElon MuskChinaOpenAIGoogleATOAFR WeekendFetching latest articles