The Victorian Greens have warned the Victorian Government to protect Victorian health patient data from being sent to AI company linked to lethal targeting in Gaza, Palantir.
It comes after the Minister was unable to rule out working with controversial AI company Palantir when being questioned in Parliament by Greens MP, Aiv Puglielli, on Wednesday.
Palantir's AI has been linked to lethal targeting in Gaza, contributing to tens of thousands of civilian deaths. They built the system ICE uses to track and deport immigrants in the United States and are used to make military strikes in Iran and Lebanon.
The Victorians Greens have called for Jacinta Allan's Labor Government to provide urgent transparency about plans to introduce artificial intelligence into Victoria's public hospital system including which AI companies it would be working with.
A new Department of Health blueprint flagged the use of AI to identify urgent cases and overhaul outpatient systems, but the government has released little detail publicly about how the technology would work, what patient safeguards would be in place, or how sensitive health data would be protected.
The Greens have also criticised Labor for rolling out the red carpet for data centres in Victoria with very little information about how they will be powered without locking Victoria into more expensive gas and higher electricity bills.
The Greens say the Allan Labor Government is rushing to embrace AI technologies without proper public scrutiny, regulation or long-term planning.
As stated by Greens MP, Aiv Puglielli:
"Victorians should be alarmed at the idea that their health information could be given to a company like Palantir, whose technology is responsible for lethal targeting of people in Gaza and the deportation of innocent US immigrants."
As stated by the Deputy Leader of the Victorian Greens Dr Sarah Mansfield:
"Victoria's public health system is under enormous strain after years of underfunding and it's completely unacceptable that patients are waiting four years for specialist care, but it is deeply concerning that the Allan Labor Government is embracing AI in the public health system without any clear public explanation of how it's going to work."
"AI can't be a substitute for properly funding healthcare or employing doctors, nurses and allied health workers we desperately need, and Victorians deserve transparency about how this is going to work before sensitive health data is handed over to AI systems."
"The Allan Government has been rolling out the red carpet for AI and energy-hungry data centres across Victoria without any serious plan for regulation, oversight or how all of this infrastructure will be powered.
