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Australian business leaders and citizens remain cautious about AI and its effects on cyber security and broader society, KPMG and PwC have found in recent surveys.
Emma Partis
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Thu, 16 Oct 2025
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Digital Transformation
Recent surveys by KPMG and PwC have revealed a sense of AI-related unease among Australians, as citizens worry about loss of societal control and business leaders raise cyber security concerns.
KPMG’s Futuresphere 2025 report revealed that 64 per cent of Australians feared losses of personal or societal control due to the rise of AI. Public confidence in AI regulation was low, with 70 per cent believing that current regulations would not make AI use safe.
“Despite existing frameworks, public confidence in AI regulation is low. Governments must find the right balance of regulation to safeguard against known harms while also supporting innovation and economic opportunity,” James Mabbott, partner, KPMG Futures, said.
“Building public understanding of how AI works – including its benefits, risks, and safeguards – will be integral to fostering trust in an increasingly polarised world.”
Citing research by the Productivity Commission, KPMG said that overly restrictive AI regulation could jeopardise an estimated $116 billion in economic gains over a decade. At the same time, Australians remained concerned about protecting workers, creatives and the broader public.
The report noted that regulators would need to find the right balance between safeguarding Australians from AI-related risks and boosting Australia’s economic prosperity. Public education would be integral to boosting public trust, the report noted.
PwC’s 2026 Digital Trusts Insights report found that Australian organisations were accelerating their uptake of AI-enabled cyber security tools as concerns grew about AI-powered cyber attacks.
“AI is transforming cyber security across the world,” PwC Australia cyber security and privacy partner Robert Di Pietro said.
“The integration of AI into cyber security is a double-edged sword with adversaries experimenting with AI-powered cyber attacks, while Australian organisations are leaning in and investing in skills and responsible AI to strengthen defences and build digital trust.”
Over half of Australian organisations were concerned about rising cyber threats, including AI-driven malware and supply chain attacks, PwC found. Many (62 per cent) were investing more into cyber risk management in response to geopolitical volatility.
As concerns about AI-powered cyber attacks grew, 37 per cent of organisations said AI investment was the largest priority in their cyber budgets, PwC found.
KPMG found that half (52 per cent) of Australians agreed that technology would improve life for most people over the next decade, but respondents were evenly split on the benefits of AI.
One-third (33 per cent) believed AI would make life better for most people by 2040, thirty-four per cent were unsure, while 33 per cent disagreed. KPMG noted that education and confidence-building would be key to supporting the AI shift in Australia.
“The findings underscore the need for governments to build knowledge and confidence in AI, to help citizens understand the changes that are happening now and prepare for new ways of working,” Mabbott said.
“AI and other advanced technologies hold enormous potential for the betterment of society. We have a short window in time as a society to make smart decisions around how we want to embrace these new technologies. The time to act is now if we want Australia to benefit from the wave of AI and other tech-driven disruptions that are on the way.”
This story originally appeared on Cyber Daily’s sister brand, Accounting Times.
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