AI adoption in the public sector carries accountability obligations that commercial frameworks do not address. We help Australian government agencies and public sector organisations adopt AI safely — with governance structures built for ministerial accountability, public trust, and the operating requirements of a regulated public sector environment.
We assess the agency's AI readiness and risk exposure with specific focus on public sector obligations — ministerial accountability, FOI, equity requirements, Privacy Act compliance, and audit readiness. Commercial AI frameworks will not satisfy a Senate estimates question, a Freedom of Information request, or an Auditor-General review.
We build AI governance frameworks aligned to the Commonwealth AI Ethics Principles, the Privacy Act 1988, sector-specific legislation, and any applicable PSPF or ISM requirements. Our governance work produces accountability structures that satisfy the requirements of an audit, a ministerial briefing, or a Senate estimates appearance.
We identify which AI use cases offer the most public value within the agency's governance constraints — accounting for the accountability risk of citizen-facing applications. We prepare executive and ministerial AI assurance briefings that withstand public scrutiny.
Public sector organisations operate under accountability obligations that commercial organisations do not — ministerial responsibility, FOI, public trust, equity and accessibility requirements, and in many cases strict procurement rules. AI adoption that does not account for these obligations creates risk that is qualitatively different from commercial AI risk.
We work with federal and state government agencies, local government bodies, statutory authorities, health services, and public education and service delivery organisations. Our approach is sized for mid-tier agencies — not major whole-of-government programmes — though our frameworks are applicable at any scale.
Public trust is a governance requirement, not just a communications consideration. Our public sector AI governance frameworks include transparency obligations — what must be disclosed to citizens, what must be documented for audit purposes, and how AI decision-making is made accountable in a way that satisfies ministerial and public scrutiny.