The Australian Government have enlisted the help of Microsoft in a bid to combat their cybercrime issues.

Anthony Albanese announced a record two-year, $5 billion investment from the tech company in Washington overnight.

In a deal that will see the business make its biggest investment to the Australian economy in the company’s history, Microsoft Vice Chair and President, Brad Smith, said that it shows their willingness to support Australia in their transition into the artificial intelligence era.

“[The investment] is a testament to our commitment to the country’s growth and prosperity in the AI era,” he said.

Albanese and his government will release a new cybersecurity strategy in the coming weeks running until 2030 amid the Optus and Medibank scandals late last year. The Prime Minister said that this is an approach being taken by the government to prevent any future attacks.

“We know, because we’ve seen through the examples in Australia, the impact that a cyber-attack can have,” he said.

“This will increase Australia’s capacity to resist such attacks, but also to identify potential weaknesses.”

Microsoft will be investing in the expansion of its hyperscale cloud computing which will see its capacity increase by about 250 percent. They will also help Australia foster a transition into the artificial intelligence era, enabling the country to “capitalise on the significant economic and productivity opportunities presented by the latest AI technology”.

Future plans include partnering with TAFE NSW to open Australia’s first Datacentre Academy in early 2024, as well as supporting an additional 300,000 Australians as part of its global skills program.

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