Capability 2.2.3
Geospatial
Definition
Earth observation and location-based datasets, including satellite and aerial imagery, LiDAR, cadastral maps, topographical data, and real-time positioning feeds used in logistics, mobility and urban systems.
Examples
- Digital Earth Australia (DEA) (Geoscience Australia)
- National Land Parcel Boundaries (PSMA Australia)
- 5m LiDAR-derived DEM (State agencies/GA)
- GDA2020 coordinate grid/FSDF (Australia New Zealand Land Information Council & GA).
Indicators
- Spatial granularity and temporal refresh rate of national mapping datasets (e.g. resolution ≤1 m, update frequency ≤12 months)
- Standardised metadata schema
- Federated compliance and scalability (legal and institutional interoperability)
- FAIR compliance (findable, accessible, interoperable, reusable)
- CARE compliance (collective benefit, authority to control, responsiblilty and ethics)
- Provenance and lineage tracking
- Consent frameworks
- Onshore hosting and secure processing environments (e.g. SURE)
- Clear licensing
- Longevity and version control
- Domain specific data standards
- Machine readiness formatting
National AI Plan
PLAN COMMITMENT
Significant commitment
See general comment at 2.2.1 (Language, Arts, Culture & History). Supports geospatial data for AI through Geoscience Australia’s Earth Observation Program and the Australia–United States Partnership in Landsat Next. References existing funding of $440 million to enable access to next-generation satellite missions and standards for verification of earth observation data for AI applications in sectors including agriculture and mining (Action 6). Significant commitment by government in the plan aligns with the recommendation to leverage and maintain agency. This is one of 8 capabilities over which Australia wields very high agency; national priority should be given to maintaining this agency and leveraging it internationally to offset gaps in other capabilities of low agency.
Stocktake
Geospatial Services NSW. Spatial Services (NSW Department of Customer Service). Accessed October 2025. https://www.spatial.nsw.gov.au
Digital Twin Victoria (DTV). Victorian Government / Land.Victoria. 2025. Accessed October 2025. https://digitaltwin.vic.gov.au/public/
Digital Earth Australia (DEA). Geoscience Australia. Accessed October 2025. https://www.ga.gov.au/scientific-topics/dea
CSDILA digital twin platform. University of Melbourne / Centre for Spatial Data Infrastructures and Land Administration. May 2022. Accessed October 2025. https://eng.unimelb.edu.au/csdila/research/archive/digital-twin
Terria Platform (TerriaJS). CSIRO. Developed by Geoscience Australia and the NationalMap team. Accessed October 2025. https://www.terria.io/
Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) 1 Second Digital Elevation Model (DEM) Version 1.0. Geoscience Australia (ELVIS – Elevation Information System). Accessed October 2025. https://elevation.fsdf.org.au/
5m LiDAR-derived Digital Elevation Model (DEM). Geoscience Australia / Digital Elevation Data. Updated 5 March 2025. Accessed October 2025. https://www.ga.gov.au/scientific-topics/national-location-information/digital-elevation-data
National Land Parcel Boundaries (PSMA). PSMA Australia / Geoscape Australia. Accessed October 2025. https://www.geoscape.com.au/
Is the Stocktake missing evidence?
Share additional information for potential future Assessments