What Happened Today?
South Australia’s Royal Commission into Artificial Intelligence released its scoping paper and opened its online submission portal on 29 October 2026. Commissioner Kate Pounder announced both in her talk at Open Summit AI in Adelaide, which I attended. The first round of submissions closes on 30 November 2026.
This post is for South Australian business owners, marketers and anyone working with AI who wants a say in the direction of the state’s AI policy. It covers what the Commission is, the six themes it has chosen, what it is asking interested parties to tell it, and how people can take part.
Overview
- What Is The Royal Commission Into AI?
- What Is Out Of Scope?
- The Six Themes
- What Is The Commission Asking?
- How To Make A Submission
- What This Means For South Australian Businesses
What is the Royal Commission into AI?
The SA Royal Commission into Artificial Intelligence, set up by the State Government, is a forward-looking inquiry into what AI means for South Australia. Commissioner Pounder described it as “the first time in the world that any jurisdiction has done something like a royal commission into AI.”
Most people think of royal commissions as looking back at something that went wrong. South Australia’s model also allows future-facing commissions focused on policy, and this is one of them. The commission has been asked to consider what AI can mean for prosperity, productivity and individual wellbeing, and how it can be used safely and in a trusted way.
There are three commissioners:
- Iain Ross, the chair, a former federal judge with a strong background in workplace relations and workplace law.
- Chris Manning, an Australian AI researcher based at Stanford, and a co-founder and leader of Stanford’s Human-Centered AI Institute.
- Kate Pounder, former CEO of the Tech Council of Australia, who grew up in regional South Australia and studied at the University of Adelaide.
The Commission is due to report to the South Australian Government by mid-2027.
What Is Out of Scope?
The Commission will not cover out-of-scope areas such as sovereign AI or national security, copyright, or data centres. Commissioner Pounder said these are mainly federal matters, or areas where there is a lot of work already underway.
The Six Themes
The Commission has broken its Terms of Reference into six key themes:
| Theme | What it covers |
|---|---|
| AI and Society | The major social effects of AI, balancing benefits and harms, and making sure the benefits are shared across the whole community. |
| Better Services for People in the State | Using AI to improve state-delivered services such as health, housing, planning, transport, emergency services and education, across government, charities and the private sector. |
| Growing Innovation in South Australia | Where the state has strengths, what helps or blocks AI uptake across industries, and the barriers businesses run into. |
| Managing Economic Transitions | How work, foundational industries and skills change, and how businesses of every size can share in the opportunity. |
| Education, Training and Skills for the Future | How AI should and shouldn’t be used in schools and vocational education, support for educators, students and parents, and AI as a new foundational literacy. |
| Safe and Trusted AI | What states can do through legislation, procurement and industry rules, evidence of existing or emerging harms, and keeping government ready for what comes next. |
Commissioner Pounder said the Commission will release thematic papers over the coming months that go deeper into each theme.
What is the Commission Asking?
The scoping paper asks people to help set priorities early, because the Commission has limited time before it reports. The questions and feedback it asks for include:
- Are these the right themes? And are there important questions missing that the Commission should look at early?
- What opportunities and concerns do you have? And what evidence supports them?
- What does AI mean for South Australia’s economy? Including the state’s particular industries, research strengths and way of life.
- How can the Commission make it easier to take part?
How to Make a Submission
You can submit through the Commission’s online portal, linked from the Royal Commission into Artificial Intelligence website. The portal lets you answer the scoping paper’s questions and also provides a free response field for any additional questions or feedback. Commissioner Pounder said it supports voice-to-text, and translation into other languages is planned.
Key points:
- Deadline: the first round closes on 30 November.
- It is the first round, not the only one. Later papers will bring more chances to engage, including industry roundtables and hearings.
- Stay informed: you can subscribe to updates on the Commission’s website.
What This Means for South Australian Businesses
Two of the six themes, Growing Innovation in South Australia and Managing Economic Transitions, speak directly to small and medium businesses. The Commission wants to hear where adoption is working, where it stalls and what gets in the way. That is valuable evidence that only the people doing the work can provide.
Commissioner Pounder closed her Open Summit AI talk by asking communities to consider helping shape one of the most important technological trends of our time, rather than just being shaped by it. If you use AI in your business, or have concerns about it, now is the time to put your experience on the record.
