The increasing integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) into public sector organisations marks a shift in how infrastructural power is enacted. This study will explore the sociotechnical dynamics of AI implementation within the Australian public sector, examining how technological systems reshape work practices, governance structures, and institutional legitimacy. Drawing on Mann’s (1984) theory of Infrastructural power and Science and technology studies (STS) scholarship on the social shaping of technology, process normalisation theory, and structuration, the research will investigate the technology mediated influence of AI through its imbrication with institutional routines and norms.

The study will analyse organisational communications, workplace adaptations across key job families, and evolving governance frameworks in the public sector. It will illuminate how public sector organisations navigate AI’s expansion, revealing tensions between automation and discretion, standardisation and professional judgment, and innovation and institutional inertia.

Situating AI within the broader schema of infrastructural power, this research will contribute to understanding the modern state as a dynamic technopolitical assemblage. It will offer critical insights for policymakers and scholars concerned with the future of public administration and governance of intelligent technologies.

This seminar is Esther's Confirmation of Candidature milestone presentation. As such, the presentation is a closed event for RegNet staff, visitors and students only.

About the speaker

Esther McVicar is a PhD Candidate at the School of Regulation and Global Governance, in the College of Law, Governance and Policy at the Australian National University examining the use of Artificial Intelligence in Public Sector organisations. This research follows a 25-year career in governance, risk, and organisational systems in the public and private sectors.

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This seminar presentation is in-person only. Registration is not required for in-person attendance as neither the ANU nor ACT Health conduct contact tracing.

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Image credit: AI generated stylised image of humanoid robot with Australian Parliament House in the background, by Esther McVicar