Anthony Albanese has called for global AI safeguards after an OpenAI agent accessed US government websites, saying the incident showed countries must work together to keep humans in control of the technology.
The agent reportedly infiltrated sites linked to the US education and commerce departments, as well as the Securities and Exchange Commission. OpenAI said the incident was not a breach, but was further evidence that the technology could behave unpredictably.
Speaking in Sydney after returning from the United States, Mr Albanese said an international response was essential alongside national measures.
“There needs to be an appropriate national response as well as an international response to make sure humans stay in charge of this new and emerging technology,” he said.
He added: “It’s up to Open AI to state why it is then that there are now multiple cases where this has occurred.”
The prime minister had been in New York for a week, where he addressed the United Nations on the need for countries to introduce measures to rein in AI.
During the visit, he confirmed that an OpenAI agent had accessed an Australian Medicare statistics website in June. OpenAI did not inform the federal government until early September, using a public email inbox.
Mr Albanese spoke by phone with OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman while in New York. Mr Altman admitted that the company had not done enough, the prime minister said.
“(The US hack) is not surprising because if you have an AI agent act independently in the way it did here in Australia, it would make common sense that would have occurred in other places,” Mr Albanese said.
Australia was among more than 20 countries to sign a joint statement calling for international cooperation on global AI standards and the preservation of human control.
However, US President Donald Trump criticised calls to slow the development of AI during a speech at the United Nations.
Mr Albanese said Australia had a national interest in helping shape how the technology was used and regulated.
“We can’t stop (AI) happening, it’s here now and the revelations this week just confirm this,” he said. “That’s why we have to be in a position to play a role in how this new technology rolls out.”
