Supporting effective use of AI in the life sciences: insights from an Australian national consultation

Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) are rapidly changing the way we work in the life sciences. Australian BioCommons, Australia’s national digital research infrastructure for molecular life science, recently called upon the life science community to share how they apply these tools in their work as part of a national consultation. 

These activities captured input from a diverse range of expertise and viewpoints and allowed us to identify national trends, bottlenecks, and digital infrastructure gaps being experienced in the field.

This poster explores results from a survey covering current AI usage, compute, storage requirements, training and skills support. We also share insights from focus groups involving life science researchers and research support staff in which we asked the critical question “which single AI skill do researchers value most?” and explored shared experiences, barriers to adoption, and training preferences. 

Finally, the poster provides a sneak peek into our AI for the life sciences training program. We outline how we are responding to community needs by designing learning experiences that are pedagogically sound, inclusive, scalable, and sustainable.

Community-centric consultation is vital to the long-term impact and sustainability of Australian BioCommons services and training. Listening to the community is enabling us to focus our efforts and better support effective use of AI in life science research in Australia.

This poster was presented at the ELIXIR All Hands Meeting, Lyon, France, 8 - 10 June 2026.