A new hotline has been launched for small and medium-sized enterprises considering the introduction of AI. Photo: Shutterstock
Australian small businesses interested in AI but not sure where to start can now pick up the phone and ask AI directly.
The SME Center of AI (SMEC AI) has launched a toll-free national AI information line. The line provides tailored advice to businesses on how they can apply technology to their operations using generative AI-powered voice technology.
The offering comes as new research from NAB shows that adoption of AI in small and medium-sized businesses continues to grow, with around 40 per cent actively using the technology and 22 per cent reporting “significant transformational improvements” from its use.
However, many companies remain hesitant due to concerns about cost, skills, data readiness, and uncertainty about return on investment.
The AI Information Line, which can be accessed by calling 1800 517 403, uses an AWS-based generative AI platform to guide callers through a conversation about their business, industry, challenges, and goals before creating a detailed PDF report with recommendations and next steps.
practical help
SMEC AI Managing Director Andrew Lai said the service was designed both to help businesses kick-start their AI journey and to demonstrate how far conversational AI technology has come.
“It’s not just about giving small businesses a little help,” Lai said. information age.
“We wanted to demonstrate that AI actually works and is really useful.”
The decision to make the AI Information Line a model for AI capabilities was driven by the maturation of voice technology, powered by generative AI (genAI). This technology has evolved from simple prompts to fully personalized conversations that are less likely to frustrate callers.
“We have been testing voice AI for several years,” Lai explained. “But it’s only recently that things have really started to work. For example, voice AI speaks without humans, but it understands people well and comes up with some great suggestions.”
He said the system “recognizes that it’s clearly AI” and noted that callers can request a reservation with a real human, but added that the fact that the line is open 24/7 is “a great way to help small businesses who are pretty time-poor and can only make calls outside of business hours.”
“Many small businesses are still phone-based, and we thought this was a really good way to meet their flexibility needs. This is the first point of contact for small businesses looking to start their AI journey.”
Flying the flag of responsible AI
By providing relevant and considered advice to small and medium-sized enterprises, Lai believes that AI Infoline can provide value to companies still on the fence about AI implementation.
The system is designed to show companies what today’s genAI technology is capable of, and Lai pointed out that SMEC AI designed this system as a clear example of human-centered and responsible AI.
This means that the system openly respects privacy and security requirements. Identify yourself as an AI. Ask the caller for permission to record the call. We provide an opt-out facility for those who wish to do so. It operates openly as a “sovereign AI” and stores data within Australia. And so on.
“If you have someone calling you all night long, you might not realize that this is not a human being,” Lai explained. “So we are very clear that this is an AI system.”
The philosophy echoes the federal government’s recently announced move to double down on responsible AI, which La Trobe University Vice-Chancellor Professor Theo Farrell said was important to increase corporate adoption of the technology.
This month, the university launched a three-company pilot of its new AI Business Studio program. Under the program, La Trobe Business School students will provide critical support to small and medium-sized businesses that “recognize the exciting opportunities that AI offers, but need help getting there,” Farrell said.
La Trobe aims to support more than 1,000 small businesses by 2028, “helping them assess their data, technology and workforce readiness, identify opportunities for automation and workflow improvements, and make actionable recommendations to improve productivity and client outcomes.”
