Industry leader calls for national adoption of AI in planning to address housing shortfall
Australia’s housing sector could see significant change if artificial intelligence is integrated into planning systems nationwide, according to Sam Heckel (pictured above), executive director of planning and environment at the Housing Industry Association (HIA).
“Harnessing artificial intelligence to drive a once in a generation overhaul of planning systems across the country could be the circuit breaker Australia needs to deliver 1.2 million homes over next 5 years,” Heckel said. “Putting AI to work in planning will help clear the biggest bottlenecks in housing delivery, freeing up planning resources to focus on the complex assessments that need more detailed professional involvement.
“AI can help review documentation, assess state significant development applications and complete post-submission checks, providing a recommendation all before a human needs to get involved. This makes the final planning decisions by local and state governments for approvals quicker and easier. Equally, it provides greater transparency to the process for all parties.”
Heckel noted that NSW is leading the charge on AI adoption with the minister wanting the systems up and running by end of 2025. This follows the AI trials NSW have been working on with local councils across the state, with homes getting approved in as little as two days.
A backlog of approximately 26,000 homes awaiting Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) assessment has been identified as a key area where AI could make a difference. The federal government’s new ‘strike team’ within the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water has been tasked with expediting housing approvals to bring projects to construction readiness more quickly. Integrating AI into planning approvals is seen as a potential method to support this initiative and accelerate the delivery of new housing.
“Using AI to unlock more housing is exactly the kind of thing we need to see, and it presents real opportunities in speeding up approvals and making our economy more productive,” Heckel said.
“HIA is urging all states and territories to take up new technology in ways that reduce regulatory burden and speed up approvals, and this follows the recent Economic Reform Roundtable where AI was a big focus of discussion.”
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