A wave of AI innovation is overtaking Australia and New Zealand

This blog is part of the AI worldwide series, which highlights customer stories from around the globe. Read more stories from India, France, Brazil, and Japan.

As technology advances rapidly, AI emerges as a source of innovation, promising to redefine what’s possible in our world. This sense of wonder and anticipation was palpable during our recent stop in Sydney for the Microsoft AI Tour. The vibrant enthusiasm for AI was displayed by businesses and governments in Australia and New Zealand showcasing the region’s commitment to leveraging AI to transform services, enhance efficiency, and solve complex challenges with unprecedented agility.

Microsoft’s recent investment of AUD $5 billion in Australia’s digital infrastructure is a testament to our belief in AI’s potential to empower every individual and organization to achieve more. This significant investment not only reflects our confidence in AI’s transformative power but also highlights the pivotal role Australia and New Zealand are poised to play in global AI innovation. It is against this backdrop of optimism and groundbreaking investment that we delve into success stories that demonstrate the tangible benefits AI is already bringing to the Australia and New Zealand region.

Telstra: Revolutionizing customer service through AI

Facing the challenge of improving customer service efficiency and reducing the need for repeated information, Telstra turned to Microsoft Cloud and Azure OpenAI Service to develop their generative AI solutions, “One Sentence Summary” and “Ask Telstra.” These tools, by summarizing customer histories and providing quick access to internal knowledge, have drastically improved the efficiency and personalization of customer service, setting a new standard in telecommunications.

The successful pilot programs underscored the solutions’ impact, demonstrating marked improvements in operational efficiency and customer satisfaction, prompting Telstra to expand these AI tools across its network. This strategic move underscores Telstra’s commitment to innovatively enhancing service delivery through responsible AI use, in collaboration with Microsoft and Accenture.

South Australia’s Department for Education: Empowering education with AI

Confronted with the advent of generative AI services like ChatGPT, the South Australia Department for Education harnessed AI to create EdChat, a pioneering chatbot designed to enrich teaching and learning. This innovative tool, developed in collaboration with Microsoft and IT partner, Insight Enterprises, has equipped students and teachers with a dynamic resource for exploring AI safely, fostering essential future skills.

The outcome of the eight-week EdChat trial revealed a significant shift in how students engage with information and learning, promoting a culture of inquiry and critical thinking, while ensuring a secure and ethical AI learning environment. EdChat serves as a secure environment where students can ask questions without fear of judgment, granting them increased agency over their own educational paths.

This initiative not only highlights the department’s proactive approach to educational challenges but also sets a precedent for integrating AI in education, empowering the next generation with the knowledge and skills for a future where AI plays a central role.

“EdChat is a truly inspiring example of how the education sector can embrace generative AI to deliver value to its most important stakeholders – students,” says Veli Mati-Vanamo, CTO (APAC) of Insight Enterprises.

CommBank: Enhancing financial services with AI

As an early adopter of AI in the banking sector, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CommBank) has embraced a variety of innovative AI use cases to redefine customer service and enhance operational efficiency. The bank ran a successful trial of GitHub Copilot with the goal of accelerating the coding processes, and it has deployed generative AI for personalized customer notifications, a Q&A tool to expedite staff response times, and AI-driven analysis to streamline loan processing.

Informed by these successes, Commbank recently announced an exciting expansion of their partnership with Microsoft. This collaboration will focus on generative AI to develop tools like the CommBank copilot to resolve customer queries faster and help customers better understand their money.

“Through our ongoing partnership,…we also see this as an opportunity to work together with leading global technology teams to ensure CBA’s safety and security is constantly upgraded and improved, to keep pace with the evolving threat landscape,” said Gavin Munroe, CommBank’s Group Executive, Technology and Group Chief Information Officer.

The partnership also emphasizes the development of AI-driven solutions to support CommBank staff and customers, with Microsoft engineers already collaborating on projects to elevate customer service and security.

This strategic and planned adoption of AI technologies is solidifying CommBank’s position as a leader in responsible and ethical AI use, demonstrating a forward-thinking approach to leveraging AI for comprehensive business and community betterment.

Australian Government: Innovating public service with AI

In a pioneering initiative, the Australian Government is harnessing generative AI through a strategic partnership with Microsoft to revolutionize public service. Through the current pilot, 7,000 government staff members are receiving AI literacy and skills training of Microsoft Copilot for Microsoft 365 based on a six-month trial aimed to significantly enhance productivity and the delivery of services to the public.

“By strengthening our partnership with Microsoft, we are charting a course for the future of public service – one where generative AI is used responsibly to enhance the work of the APS in delivering for Australians without compromising on safety,” said Australian Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese when he announced the trial in November 2023.

The initiative positions Australia at the forefront of global leaders in integrating AI within government operations, reflecting a deep commitment to innovation and responsible AI use, paving the way for a robust digital future.

LawVu: Transforming legal workflows with AI

Embedded deeply within LawVu’s operational fabric, AI is transforming legal workflows and decision-making processes. As a pioneer in Microsoft’s AI First Movers program, LawVu leverages Azure OpenAI Service to power its AI Assist feature, significantly streamlining contract reviews with rapid access to essential details, thereby bypassing exhaustive document examinations.

While LawVu’s focus is on streamlining internal processes for in-house legal teams, “Now, with the power of AI embedded in that workflow, we are taking a crucial next step in transforming what in-house legal teams can do and how efficiently they can do it,” said Sam Kidd, CEO and Co-founder of LawVu.

The use of AI extends beyond customer-facing features to internal operations, where LawVu harnesses ChatGPT for swift resolution of employee policy queries and GitHub Copilot to accelerate software development, embodying AI as a core component of its innovation strategy. This holistic adoption of AI not only alleviates administrative loads but also marks a profound shift towards efficiency and enhanced productivity, symbolizing a leap forward in legal technology evolution.

Qscan Group: Advancing medical diagnostics with AI

In the face of a global radiologist shortage and heightened demand for diagnostic imaging, one of Australia’s leading medical diagnostic imaging providers, Qscan Group, turned to AI to optimize the productivity of its radiologists. Utilizing Microsoft’s cloud and AI capabilities, including Nuance’s PowerScribe One, Qscan Group radiologists improved their productivity by more than 5%.

“We’ve seen some significant improvements in our cybersecurity posture and our overall technology performance by leveraging the Microsoft ecosystem,” says Simon Button, Chief Technology Officer at Qscan Group. “It ensures that we have a high performing, yet safe and secure organization.”

Qscan is already exploring ways that generative AI and the latest AI advances can improve patient and employee experience from improving the quality of radiology reports to automating call centers, setting new benchmarks for excellence in healthcare technology.

Stuff Group: Strengthening te reo Māori language with AI translation

In their ongoing effort to support the revitalization of te reo Māori, New Zealand’s Stuff Group Te Puna has launched an exciting pilot program that leverages AI to translate news articles, videos, and audio content at scale.

“Bilingual articles aren’t new at Stuff, we’ve been producing them for years,” said Stuff’s Pou Tiaki Matua Carmen Parahi (Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāti Hine, Rongowhakaata). “But this is the first time we will be using AI to translate even more articles at scale, which will be quality-checked by a human translator and our editorial team before being published.”

Using technology from Microsoft and Straker Translations, the AI tool will not only multiply the number of articles published each week in te reo Māori but greatly increase its ability to translate live or breaking news.

Contrasted with his own experience as a young Māori in the 1970s and 1980s, Grant Straker (Ngāti Raukawa), Founder and Chief Executive of Straker Translations proudly noted, “Today’s generation of Māori and everyone that comes after will be able to engage with regular news content in their own language.”

Microsoft and ASD: Elevating cyber resilience with Sentinel-CTIS integration

The cybercrime threat landscape is escalating, with bad actors exploring the use of large language models (LLMs) and generative AI to research and plan cyber-attacks. As part of the Microsoft-Australian Signals Directorate Cyber Shield, Microsoft Australia and the Australian Signals Directorate (ASD) Cyber Threat Intelligence Sharing program (CTIS) have partnered together to advance cyber resilience and ensure a safer future for Australians.

The collaboration will enable public-private exchange of threat intelligence to boost ASD’s Cyber Threat Intelligence Sharing program (CTIS) and a world-first integration with Microsoft Sentinel technology. Microsoft Sentinel customers will be offered a free download capability to integrate into the CTIS program more easily and benefit from Microsoft’s global threat analysis of more than 78 trillion signals every day to support the fight against the evolving cybersecurity threats.

“Cyber security is a team sport, and the collective efforts of both the public and private sectors are vital to defend our nation,” said Rachel Noble PSM, Director-General of the Australian Signals Directorate. “By fostering such partnerships, we can more quickly identify threats, combat threat actors and make a lasting impact on Australia’s state of security.”

By actively disrupting cybercrime, including dismantling phishing domains and targeting ransomware groups like Black Basta, the collaborative use of AI between government, industry, and international partners has proven effective in bolstering Australia’s cyber defense.

AI for everyone in Australia and New Zealand

These compelling stories from Australia and New Zealand illuminate the transformative potential of AI across sectors, serving as a source of inspiration for business leaders to explore how AI can revolutionize their operations.

Microsoft’s dedication to empowering organizations with AI technology and ethical guidance underpins a future where innovation leads to sustainable growth and enhanced human experience. As we continue this series, stay tuned for further insights and stories that celebrate the transformative journey of AI across industries and regions.

Take the next step in your AI journey by exploring Microsoft AI solutions, diving into The AI Strategy Roadmap, and getting skilled up with Microsoft Learn’s AI learning hub to ensure you’re ready to leverage Microsoft AI to its fullest potential.