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ARM Hub has welcomed the release of Ambitious Australia, the final report of the Strategic Examination of Research and Development (SERD), chaired by Robyn Denholm and commissioned by the Australian Government.
The report represents what ARM Hub describes as the most comprehensive review of Australia’s innovation system in a generation and a significant opportunity to build the foundations of a stronger industrial economy.
R&D System ‘Too Fragmented’
The report’s central finding is that Australia’s R&D system is too fragmented, risk-averse and disconnected from commercial outcomes to serve industry well.
ARM Hub CEO, Professor Cori Stewart, pointed to longstanding gaps that the report has now formally identified.
“Australia has strong research capability. What we’ve lacked is alignment of our talent to Australian industry, as well as scale-up capital and the digital infrastructure to turn that talent into commercial outcomes,” Professor Stewart explained.
“This report names these gaps clearly and points toward solutions that could make a real difference for manufacturers, particularly on data infrastructure, tax incentives and workforce.”
Professor Stewart added that the focus now shifts to implementation.
Production Tax Credit For Advanced Manufacturing
Among the report’s 20 recommendations is a proposed tax credit or subsidy designed to retain advanced manufacturing resulting from local R&D activities in Australia.
For manufacturers investing in robotics integration or AI-enabled production, this amounts to a direct financial incentive to keep that work onshore.
National Strategic Initiatives To Fund Robotics And AI
The report proposes a National Strategic Initiatives (NSI) model that explicitly includes AI, quantum, robotics and advanced manufacturing as enabling technologies.
Each initiative would fund proof-of-concept schemes and support accelerators focused on moving research into market applications, a step ARM Hub views as critical to bridging the gap between lab and factory floor.
Shared Industrial Datasets Could Unlock AI At Scale
The SERD report calls for improved data infrastructure and greater industry-research data sharing.
ARM Hub noted that AI pilots scale most effectively with quality data, making the push for shared and accessible industrial datasets foundational to AI adoption programs across the manufacturing sector.
R&D Tax Incentive Reform Raises Questions
The panel recommended streamlining the R&D Tax Incentive (RDTI) with dedicated streams for startups and scaleups.
However, ARM Hub flagged a concern with the government’s proposed response to raise the minimum annual R&D project expenditure threshold to $150,000, warning this risks excluding small and medium enterprises currently using the scheme.
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Workforce Development Elevated To National Priority
The report calls for stronger industry pathways for researchers and a dedicated RD&I workforce strategy.
For manufacturers deploying collaborative robots or AI systems, the pipeline of engineers and data professionals to support those deployments is a pressing concern that the report now acknowledges at a national level.
What Comes Next
ARM Hub indicated it will continue to engage with the policy process as the government responds to the report’s recommendations. Manufacturers seeking support with AI or robotics adoption can access guidance through ARM Hub’s existing programs.
The full SERD report is available on the Department of Industry website.
Last Updated on March 18, 2026 by Nick Ross
