Are Chatbots the Next Big Shift in Government Procurement? (AI CoLab)
This session will put the spotlight on procurement and we will explore what AI-assisted procurement could look like across Commonwealth Government agencies. The practical focus will be on how AI might support the everyday work of procurement: scanning the market faster, cutting through dense documents, improving drafts, testing assumptions, and giving teams a clearer view of the options in front of them.
This will be a hands-on session featuring demonstrations of emerging AI tools that can support procurement activities such as market scanning. Participants will have the opportunity to see practical examples of how generative AI, document analysis tools, copilots and conversational assistants can augment procurement processes while maintaining appropriate human oversight.
The session will use tool demonstrations and examples to show where AI can assist the process, while keeping procurement expertise, probity, accountability and human judgement firmly in place. The goal is to move past broad promise and give agencies a sharper sense of what AI-assisted procurement could change, what could go wrong, and what needs to be built first.
We will examine current procurement pain points, including:
administrative burden,
inconsistent documentation,
lengthy evaluation processes,
limited procurement capability and
compliance complexity
We’ll also get into the less glamourous – but essential - work that determines whether AI actually performs: cleaner documents, better metadata, stronger records management and structured procurement data that tools can meaningfully use. From there, we’ll test the hard questions: transparency, bias, accountability, security, IP, data handling, Commonwealth Procurement Rules, probity and where human judgement must stay firmly in control.
Facilitators
Mia is an experienced consultant with a strong STEM foundation and deep experience supporting data, ICT and digital transformation initiatives across the Federal Government. She specialises in analysis, strategy, business cases, technology options assessment, delivery planning, governance and solution design.
Mia works across the full project lifecycle, from requirements and design through to implementation support and assurance. She is skilled at translating complex technical concepts into clear, practical advice for non-technical stakeholders and senior decision makers.
Kishwar Rahman is a strategic ICT commercial and procurement specialist with more than 25 years’ experience helping government agencies reform and digitally transform procurement. Her expertise spans complex sourcing, procurement policy, commercial strategy, probity, contract management and governance.
As CEO and Founder of Curios About AI, Kishwar helps organisations adopt AI safely and practically. She brings hands-on experience from major digital procurement initiatives, including the Digital Marketplace, ICT procurement reform and Defence procurement transformation.
AI CoLab events are intentionally open and collaborative. We capture photos, audio, and AI-generated transcripts so we can remix key insights for the AI CoLab Alliance community. This is always done in line with the Charter’s values; transparent, ethical innovation and knowledge sharing to accelerate collective learning (see join.aicolab.org). By participating in an AI CoLab event, you agree to your contributions being captured and shared in accordance with this policy.