Australia’s 2026 Census Gets an AI Upgrade With Chatbot Claire
Synopsis
The Australian Bureau of Statistics is deploying AI chatbot Claire to support the 2026 Census, with more than 3.6 million households already participating and 85% of Australians expected to complete the survey online.
Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) is set to change the game once again, as they are aiming for higher online responses for the Census with the 2026 census ai chatbot Claire, helping Australians get through the Census.
The Claire chatbot is a retrieval augmented generation bot, which means it can retrieve answers from an approved knowledge base, but cannot learn from the interactions. The system has been approved for Census use and could be turned off if any issues are found in December 2025.
Around 10.8 million households are estimated to complete Census forms, and as of Monday morning, more than 3.6 million households had completed the Census. The ABS is aiming for an 85% rate of online Census responses, compared to 78.9% in 2021 and 58.8% in 2016.
Digital Expansion of the Census
The 2026 Census AI chatbot Claire is part of a digital expansion of the census. For the first time, Australians can complete the census online via myGov, as well as on paper.
There are 66 questions in the census, which are designed to capture a broad range of information about the population, including demographic characteristics, employment, education, housing, and dwelling characteristics.
In August 2025, a trial involving a new question on sexual orientation and gender was trialled with 51,752 dwellings and 9,803 respondents.
The 2026 Census AI chatbot Claire is one element of a $726 million Census programme from 2022-23 to 2026-27. The 2021 Census received a $577 million dollar funding with more than 30,000 temporary jobs to support the 2026 census.
Cybersecurity Remains Under Review
ABS is set to roll out the 2026 Census AI chatbot Claire, after the fiasco of the 2016 Census, and bolstering up their online security.
In May, an ANAO audit revealed that the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) had several cyber security vulnerabilities to address. From March 2026, the ANAO's evaluation of the ABS's overall ICT security enhancement revealed that it was a medium-high risk, and more cybersecurity staff have been hired.
ABS has accepted all four ANAO recommendations regarding risk management; advice on cyber security, security architecture and risk management in relation to the ABS' broader ICT environment.
The Census 2026 is scheduled to take place on August 11, with the first release of the Census data unveiling in June 2027.
Source: InformationAGE
Pooja Malik is a business journalist with over six years of experience covering startups, entrepreneurship, and emerging trends. She has previously worked with leading media platforms such as YourStory Media and BW BusinessWorld, where she reported on business, policy, and market developments. Currently, she serves as Editor at The Inspirepreneur Magazine, where she writes and edits stories across business, lifestyle, and travel, with a focus on clarity, accuracy, and reader relevance.
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