FINTECH MANPOWER DEVELOPMENT IN ASIA-PACIFIC FINANCIAL CENTERS WITH A FOCUS ON ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND BIG DATA PROFESSIONALS

31 30 Artificial Intelligence and Big Data Talent Development in Asia Pacific of lifelong learning, and business investments into workforce training are salient elements in the talent policy. The Australian Government has already injected A$1 billion into the JobTrainer Fund and has partnered with different states and territories to provide more Australians with advanced digital skills training for free or at a low cost. Within the program are other funding strategies such as the Job Ready Graduates Package, Digital Skills Organization, and Industry 4.0 Advanced Apprenticeship Pilot. These initiatives provide the right environment and resources for graduates. 97 In addition to formal and vocational training, the Australian Government also explores innovative education programs such as the Digital Skills Organization (DSO) program to enhance citizens’ digital skills and provide digital training products to related industries. Regarding career information dissemination, the National Careers Institute is an official source of information on vocational careers and higher education training. Australians are provided with skill matching recommendations based on their studies and careers and they are also able to access up-to-date labor market information. The Australian Government also proposed to integrate AI and big data capabilities into the existing and future workforce. The Government plans to put more effort into upskilling Australia’s workforce in order to enhance the transferability of displaced workers to other jobs and industries. The Government is also paying close attention to the current and future needs of the industry and is keeping its tertiary education and training systems flexible and responsive to the needs of growing and emerging industries related to AI and big data. On AI education, policy initiatives are provided to different community groups in Australia. For instance, the Digital Technologies Hub 98 provides online digital and technology skills education and resources to teachers, students and school workers. The Australian Government is also proactively engaging all citizens in science by promoting various STEM education programs to different communities. 99 In order to foster homegrown talent, the Australian Government has established a PhD Scholarship program to sustain a talent supply for a data-skilled workforce and to ensure a steady supply of data talent is in the pipeline for a future digital world. Finally, when it comes to attracting global AI and big data talent, the Australian Government has streamlined the Global Talent Visa Program 100 to attract professionals specializing in ten target sectors 101 to work and live in Australia. In 2020-2021, the program offered a total of 15,000 places for global talent. 97. https://digitaleconomy.pmc.gov.au/sites/default/files/2021-05/digital-economy-strategy.pdf 98. https://www.digitaltechnologieshub.edu.au/ 99. https://www.industry.gov.au/funding-and-incentives/inspiring-australia-science-engagement-in-australia 100. https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/working-in-australia/visas-for-innovation/global-talent-independent-program 101. The ten target sectors are: Resources: Agri-food and AgTech, Energy, Health Industries, Defence, Advanced Manufacturing and Space, Circular Economy, DigiTech, Infrastructure and Tourism, Financial Services and FinTech and Education. There are three sectors relating to the applications of AI, big data and data analytics. For details, please visit: https://immi.homeaffairs. gov.au/visas/working-in-australia/visas-for-innovation/global-talent-independent-program/eligibility 90. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/australia-data-center-market-investment-analysis-report-2021-sydney-leads-the- market-with-the-presence-of-30-facilities---forecast-to-2026-301300154.html 91. https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200210005460/en/Australian-Data-Analytics-Market-is-Projected-to-Grow-at- a-CAGR-of-20-During-the-Forecast-Period---ResearchAndMarkets.com 92. https://www.hiringlab.org/au/blog/2019/04/30/data-scientists-au/ 93. https://oliver-uploads-aus.s3.amazonaws.com/2020/04/29/00/17/28/865/Data%20Science%20Snapshot%202020.pdf 94. https://consult.industry.gov.au/digital-economy/ai-action-plan/supporting_documents/AIDiscussionPaper.pdf 95. https://jfgagne.ai/global-ai-talent-report-2020/ 96. https://consult.industry.gov.au/digital-economy/ai-action-plan/supporting_documents/AIDiscussionPaper.pdf In terms of big data and data analytics, Sydney leads in the number and the size of data centers in Australia with over 30 facilities and an occupancy rate of over 85%. 90 It is estimated that the data analytics market in Australia will grow with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 20% from 2021 to 2025. 91 Both the supply and demand for talent will go up alongside the growing investments into the big data sector in Sydney. Job postings for data scientists in Australia have increased dramatically by 58% in 2018. 80% of the job postings were from New South Wales (where Sydney is located) and Victoria (where Melbourne is located). 92 The job titles "Data Scientist" and "Data Analyst" were the most advertised in 2020 in Australia and New Zealand. 93 Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) estimated that the Australian industry will need 32,000 to 161,000 AI professionals, including experts in computer vision, robotics, human language technologies, data science and other AI related fields, by 2030. 94 Concerning the supply of AI talent in Australia, the increase in AI and Machine Learning talent in Australia in 2020 was 2,820 representing a 25.9% growth. However, there was a decrease in both AI/ Data Productization and Data engineering/Architecture talent in 2020, corresponding to a decrease of 52.8% and 9.5%, respectively. 95 The drop could be attributed to the economic disruptions caused by the pandemic. 2.6.2 Initiatives/Government, Industry and Education sector policies that address the demands of AI, big data, and data analytics talent The Australian Government has designed a clear roadmap for grooming AI, big data, and data analytics talents. For instance, the Government has released a policy named “An AI Action Plan for all Australians” 96 to outline its vision and policy initiatives to train, retain and attract AI, big data, and data analytics talent. The policy has several goals including to increase the diversity and number of talented AI researchers and engineers in Australia, ensuring Australians have foundational AI education and skills, fostering lifelong learning within Australia’s existing workforce, and improving business and government leaders’ understanding of the use and impact of AI. This is a comprehensive strategy to sustain the talent supply in Australia. When it comes to upskilling the existing workforce with AI and data skills, the Australian Government believes that it requires the collaboration between government, businesses, and individual workers, and that it also needs to adopt a more flexible and multi-faceted approach. Industry-led training, a culture