Access Analytic managing director Jeff Robson claims a lack of artificial intelligence-led innovation within mining companies' financial divisions is "stifling growth", with some big miners in Western Australia revealing they have no interest in using the technology in their operations.

According to a survey report by the Perth-based financial modelling company Access Analytic, some of the country's largest miners, based in WA, are not using AI within their finance divisions.

AI can be used to automate reporting and month-end processes as well as budgeting and forecasting.

It can also be used in environmental, social and governance reporting.

The 2025 CFO AI & Tech insights survey canvassed the views of chief financial officers from more than 60 companies, most of which are mining companies based in WA.

In the report, 28% of respondents revealed they had no plans to implement AI, with 67% of that cohort mining companies based in WA.

Of those using AI, 55% said it was to enhance productivity, 40% replied it was to generate insights, while 30% reported they were not using it at all.

Almost two thirds of respondents saw significant room for improvement in the way their company used data.

Despite the availability of recently-developed tools, the key challenges cited for not adopting the technology were integrating multiple systems, lack of data skills and dealing with fragmented data, at 63%, 37% and 32%, respectively.

Robson said the lack of AI-led innovation was stifling growth.

"If you take mining, there are huge opportunities for those who are nimble right now," he said.

"AI can unlock the potential of companies, improving opportunities, productivity and profitability."

Robson said boards should be asking their executives how they were applying AI to better understand data and improve productivity.

"Boards also need to consider both the threats and opportunities that AI brings," he said.

"They should be asking C-suite leaders about that right now."

The survey report also found executives not using AI were mainly concerned about privacy and a lack of skilled personnel to implement changes.

Robson said those fears were unfounded and there were very simple solutions to address those issues.

"They can use in-house large language models or off-the-shelf solutions, and train staff or hire consultants," he said.

"With support from AI that does the heavy lifting, CFOs can spend less time collating data and more time on strategic issues and adding value to the AI analysis."

Robson said with just the flick of an AI switch, companies could effectively evaluate the profitability of potential projects globally, leading to better decisions.