Australians favor AI copyright reform to attract investment, support creators

A majority of Australian voters favor updating copyright laws to facilitate AI model training within the country, provided that Australian creators are compensated. Polling conducted by YouGov between March 26 and April 2, 2026, revealed that 61% of respondents prefer new copyright arrangements that support local creators, even if it means altering existing laws. This contrasts with only 15% who wish to maintain current copyright regulations, even if it leads to AI companies investing and training their models overseas.

Furthermore, 57% of Australians support the establishment of a government-administered fund. This fund would collect payments from AI companies operating in Australia and distribute them to support Australian creators. Only 24% of those surveyed opposed developing more flexible copyright laws for AI investment when such creator support measures are included.

The survey, which polled 1,511 Australian voters, was commissioned by Good Ancestors to gauge public opinion on a key issue in Australia's AI policy development. The preamble provided to respondents highlighted the potential economic benefits of AI data centers in Australia and the outstanding copyright issue that currently deters AI companies from investing locally.