Kate Ashmor, Founder and Chair of the Tom Ashmor Foundation 
Yesterday's announcement by the Prime Minister outlining Australia's approach to artificial intelligence was a pivotal moment. It recognised what many already understand: AI will transform almost every aspect of our economy, from healthcare and education to manufacturing, defence and the way we work.
So far, the conversation has focused on regulation, infrastructure, energy, copyright and ensuring AI develops in Australia's national interest. But there is another vital conversation Australia must have, to future-proof our economy, and it begins well before university lecture theatres and research laboratories.
It begins in primary school.
Every technological breakthrough, every innovation, begins with a curious child. Someone who asked questions, experimented, made mistakes and wasn't afraid to try again. Every engineer, scientist and inventor was once a student who was given the opportunity to explore, imagine and discover.
That’s why STEM education matters. Too often, STEM is viewed through the lens of workforce shortages or future careers. While those outcomes are important, they miss the bigger picture. Impactful STEM education doesn't simply teach children science, technology, engineering and mathematics; it teaches them curiosity. It develops resilience, creativity, critical thinking and the confidence to solve problems that don't yet have answers.
These are the human skills that AI will never replace.
At the Tom Ashmor Foundation, we believe curiosity is Australia's greatest natural resource. Our purpose is simple: to inspire the next generation of curious minds, so they become our future STEM superstars.
Tom understood that innovation doesn't begin with sophisticated technology; it begins with opportunity. It begins when a child is encouraged to ask "why?", to build something with their hands, to test an idea, to fail safely and to try again.
That belief sits at the heart of everything we do. Through practical investment in STEM learning environments in public primary schools, we are creating spaces where curiosity can flourish. We are empowering educators to equip our kids to understand, shape and lead whatever technologies emerge over the years ahead. Since our launch a few months ago, we have invested in three Victorian public primary schools to create world-class STEM classrooms - supercharging their STEM curricula.
The children entering primary school today will graduate into a workforce we can barely imagine. Many of the jobs they will undertake don't yet exist. The technologies they will use haven't been invented. The challenges they will solve are still unknown.
We prepare them by nurturing curiosity, encouraging creativity and giving every child the confidence to ask better questions.
This is no longer just an education issue. It is a fundamental economic issue, an urgent productivity challenge and a national resilience priority. Australia cannot innovate its way into the future if we fail to invest in the people who will create that future.
Governments establish the frameworks that will allow AI to develop safely and responsibly. Industry has a responsibility to innovate ethically. Schools prepare young people for a rapidly changing world. But all of us – parents, educators, businesses, philanthropists and governments – share a responsibility to ensure every Australian child has the opportunity to discover the joy, and the power, of curiosity.
The AI revolution is already here. The question is not whether Australia will use artificial intelligence. The question is whether the next generation of Australians will simply consume the technology, or whether they will be the ones building it and leading the world.
The journey begins with inspiring the next generation of curious minds in our primary school classrooms.
The Tom Ashmor Foundation is an Australian charity dedicated to inspiring the next generation of curious minds by improving access to practical STEM education in public primary schools.
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