Australia tech sector hits AUD $250bn GDP milestone early

The Tech Council of Australia said the nation's technology sector contributed AUD $248.5 billion to the economy in 2025, equal to 8.9% of GDP.

Its research found the sector has effectively reached a goal of AUD $250 billion in GDP contribution originally set for 2030. It also identified technology as the largest contributor to long-term productivity growth in Australia, with gains spreading beyond specialist technology companies into industries including finance, healthcare, construction and retail.

According to the findings, technology jobs have grown by close to 200,000 since 2021, taking total tech employment to nearly 1 million, based on ABS Labour Force Survey Detailed data for the November 2025 quarter via ABS TableBuilder. Tech workers contribute about AUD $50 more per hour worked to the economy than workers in other industries.

The analysis also found the tech sector is now the second-largest contributor to GDP after mining and is expanding 50% faster than the broader economy. Productivity growth in the sector is running at about 7%, widening the gap with the rest of the economy through higher output and faster growth.

Across industries

A central finding was that technology activity inside non-tech companies now contributes almost as much to the economy as dedicated tech businesses. This suggests digital tools and systems are becoming embedded across the wider economy rather than remaining concentrated in a single sector.

That shift has implications for how policymakers and businesses assess technology's role in economic growth. The research found technology-enabled work outside the sector now generates almost the same economic value as work within it, pointing to a broader structural change in the economy.

Dr. Ilana Feain, Head of Research at the Tech Council of Australia, said the findings marked a shift in how the country should view the sector.

"Five years ago the Tech Council set a goal for the tech sector to reach $250 billion in contributions to GDP by 2030. We have effectively hit that milestone already, but what matters just as much is how that value is now being generated across the economy and how broadly those benefits are shared," Feain said.

"Technology-enabled work is now contributing as much economic value outside the tech sector as within it. Tech is no longer just an industry. It is driving productivity and growth across the whole economy, in sectors as different as banking, agriculture and aged care.

"Across much of the economy, businesses are still in the early stages of adopting digital tools such as cloud computing, software and data analytics. There is substantial room to grow.

"Emerging technologies, particularly AI, represent the next opportunity to extend those gains further, but realising that potential will require investment, the right policy settings, and a genuine focus on making sure the benefits flow broadly."

Exports focus

The report also pointed to growing concentration in Australia's technology export markets. While the export base has expanded, technology's share of total Australian exports has fallen from about 2.5% five years ago to 2% now, according to the analysis.

North America accounts for about half of all Australian tech exports, while Asia represents about 10%. That concentration could leave the sector more exposed to shifts in a narrower set of overseas markets.

"While the export base has grown, the share of total Australian exports has fallen from around 2.5 per cent five years ago to 2 per cent today, with the United States now accounting for nearly half of all tech exports," Feain said.

"With the right investment and support, tech exports could represent an area of future growth. But we need to ensure that growth is sustainable, diversified, and resilient in a more complex global environment."

The findings were released as the Strategic Examination of Research and Development recommended that technology be formally recognised as one of six National Innovation Pillars. That recommendation places the sector more directly in the frame of national industry policy and research planning.

Rianne van Veldhuizen, Vice President and Managing Director of Amazon Web Services Australia and New Zealand, said the results underlined the scale of the opportunity.

"Just as roads and ports once determined which economies could trade and grow, today it is increasingly technology. The opportunity to make technology the foundation of Australia's next wave of prosperity is real and it is here now. We have the talent and we have the ambition. But it will not be realised by accident. It will require deliberate investment, smart policy and a shared commitment to building the workforce and infrastructure that the next decade demands," van Veldhuizen said.