SHIRE of Mundaring says its new artificial intelligence (AI) policy will realise the potential benefits of the technology and help mitigate against the risks relating to its use.

The policy, which was passed at the May council meeting, was informed by the state government’s eight principles which guided the public sector’s use of AI.

The principles are human, social and environmental wellbeing, human centred values, fairness, privacy protection and security, reliability and safety, transparency, explainability and contestability, accountability and accuracy.

“The generative AI tools must be used as a starting point only and must not replace the human decision-making process,” the policy stated.

At the May council meeting Chidlow resident Christian Stegner asked how the shire would protect confidential information from hackers and third parties.

Mr Stegner’s question was taken on notice.

East ward councillor John Daw reiterated Mr Stegner’s sentiment when he asked for the item to be deferred to the July council meeting.

“It just arises a few concerns about how lightweight the policy really is,” Cr Daw said.

“I don’t think we’ve really delved into it, perhaps as much as it probably deserves.

“I think this is a really complicated area of law.”

Cr Daw’s request to defer the motion to July was denied.

In response to Cr Daw and Mr Stegner’s question, Central ward councillor Prapti Mehta said the issue of privacy was adequately addressed under section 4.1.4 of the draft policy.

“If we do not have a policy, if we deferred a policy to a later stage, it would be wrong,” Cr Mehta said.

“Policies can be interrogated and modified as required, but at this point in time, I think it’s very important to have this in place so that staff can go about doing their jobs.”

City of Swan Mayor Tanya Richardson said the city’s use of AI was governed through a management practice which guided staff on the responsible and ethical use of the technology.

Mrs Richardson said the city’s management practice was consistent with state and commonwealth legislation.

“It takes into consideration both the potential benefits of AI and its practical implications, including transparency and data privacy,” she said.

Mrs Richardson said the city was currently exploring various ways of using AI through data analysis, service improvements and efficiency gains.

The city’s online chatbot was one of the various ways it used AI.

She said since its introduction in 2023, it had helped track trending topics and peak enquiry periods, which informed planning across the organisation.

Mrs Richardson said the employment rate at the city was not affected by the use of AI.

“At the City of Swan, AI can add value to the many services we offer, complementing the work of city staff rather than replacing them.”

Echo News asked the city what it thought about the Australian Energy Market Operator’s (AEMO) warning that the grid’s stability could be threatened unless data centres’ power use was managed but the city did not provide a response.

Kalamunda Mayor Margaret Thomas said city staff used the AI model Microsoft 365 Copilot in their day-to-day admin tasks.

“Copilot only uses the information staff already have permission to access,” Ms Thomas said.

“It works within our secure Microsoft environment.”

Ms Thomas did not clarify whether they had encountered any challenges due to the use of AI but said their focus was on making sure staff understood how to use AI effectively and responsibly.

In response to the AEMO’s warning, Ms Thomas said the city supported sustainable technology use.

“(We) are always looking for ways to reduce our environmental impact.”

The shire has been contacted for comment.