Researchers looked at pain around the world and across the human lifespan, finding steepest rise happens before age 55 Women report suffering more pain than men, a major new global study has found. That was true for all types of pain the researchers measured, and comes amid continuing concern about the gender pain gap, which means women are less likely to be prescribed the pain relief they need. Continue reading...

Unions, employer groups, banks and industry experts will appear at the four-day hearings along with OpenAI, Anthropic, Microsoft and Google * Get our new political email, free app or daily news podcast OpenAI must explain how they will stop their models from inappropriately accessing Australian data, the Labor chair of the parliament’s committee on artificial intelligence has warned, ahead of federal inquiry hearings which will grill the tech company alongside Anthropic, Microsoft and Google. Independent senator David Pocock is also demanding answers, saying OpenAI “still have a lot they need to answer” about their AI agent accessing Services Australia data on Medicare and the company’s “appalling” tardiness in notifying the federal government about the incident. Follow our Australia politics live blog for latest updates Continue reading...

The hosts’ stunning Test victory was overshadowed by the scale of national angst felt in Australia after the team’s ball tampering For South African cricketers, administrators and supporters, the most surprising aspect of the Sandpaper scandal was not that it happened. After all, the ball had been suspiciously reverse-swinging during the first two Tests of that ill-fated series in 2018. The atmosphere had turned febrile after a stairwell bust-up between Quinton de Kock and David Warner in Durban and after supporters directed misogynistic abuse at Warner and his family in Gqeberha. Nathan Lyon had promised before the tour to “head-butt the line” of what was acceptable. Darren Lehmann, then Australia’s coach, came from an old school where bullying was sugar-coated with the phrase “mental disintegration”. No, what surprised South Africans most was the scale of the fallout, and how one tiny piece of sandpaper could cause so much national angst. Continue reading...

My brother said I was terrible at mulching; he was right. But before tearing up my contract, he imparted some words of wisdom In early 2020 in Canberra, I left my job in human resources. Ironically the constant onboarding and offboarding of employees made me realise no one ever stays in the same job forever. By the time winter rolled around, it was Covid lockdowns. I had grown a scruffy beard and turned my bedroom in my mother’s house into a man cave, complete with empty beer cans, a TV blaring sport and a glowing gaming setup in the corner. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Guardian Australia investigation reveals state governments use shared graves to bury those deemed too poor to pay for funerals. ‘It’s unspeakable,’ one relative says * Find more from the Unmarked graves investigation here * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Vietnam veterans, rough sleepers and other impoverished Australians are being buried in unmarked communal graves often holding four or more people, a practice relatives have described as “unspeakable” and “a disgrace”. A Guardian Australia investigation has identified more than 100 unmarked graves across New South Wales, and some in Queensland, that are being used by state governments to bury those deemed too poor to afford their own funerals. Continue reading...

Peak Jewish bodies organise ceremonies on third anniversary of attacks that triggered conflict in which 74,000 Palestinians have been killed * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Jewish Australians will mark the third anniversary of the 7 October attacks on Wednesday as Labor state governments condemn pro-Palestinian vigils to be held the same day. Peak Jewish bodies have organised commemorations across the capital cities but avoided publicising locations as community members report ongoing fears for their safety since the Bondi terror attack in December. Continue reading...

Our relationships with pets matter to wellbeing. But concern for an animal’s welfare can also become a practical barrier to healthcare “Doctor, do you know I have a little dog?” My team exchanges a glance. It’s my turn today. Continue reading...

Former MP and Greens Institute head, Max Chandler-Mather, says proposal for publicly owned supermarket chain will ease grocery prices * Get our new political email, free app or daily news podcast More than 200 Coles and Woolworths supermarkets would be nationalised, and hundreds of government grocery stores opened, under a $25bn plan being put forward by former Greens MP Max Chandler-Mather. Channelling New York mayor Zohran Mamdani’s plan for publicly owned grocery stores, Chandler-Mather, the boss of the party’s thinktank, the Greens Institute, wants to use new forced divestiture laws to take over major supermarket sites and three distribution centres. Sign up for Guardian Australia’s Politics, really newsletter here Continue reading...

Anthony Albanese joins about 4,000 people in Fiji for preparatory meeting for year-ending Cop31 UN climate summit * Sign up for climate and environment editor Adam Morton’s free Clear Air newsletter here The Australian prime minister, Anthony Albanese, has declared it is “important that Pacific voices are heard” after landing in Fiji on Monday to attend his first UN climate summit since becoming prime minister more than four years ago. Albanese joined about 4,000 people in Nadi for a preparatory meeting for the year-ending Cop31 UN climate summit in Turkey while facing criticism from his political opponents at home. Pre-Cop meetings are usually small and bureaucratic affairs, but this meeting has a double purpose: it is being held in the Pacific after Australia and regional leaders argued it would help bring global attention to the plight of countries most at risk from the climate crisis. Sign up to get climate and environment editor Adam Morton’s Clear Air column as a free newsletter Continue reading...

Alpine areas also experience record-breaking heat with snow depth recorded at zero in Kosciuszko national park Australia had its second hottest September on record last month as global heating and a strengthening El Niño combined to break a string of heat records around the country. Bureau of Meteorology data showed the minimum night-time temperatures across the continent were also the hottest for any September on a record that goes back to 1910. Averaged temperatures ranked in the top five warmest Septembers for every state, and the sixth hottest for the Northern Territory. Continue reading...

How could this happen? * Sign up here to get an email whenever First Dog cartoons are published * Get all your needs met at the First Dog shop if what you need is First Dog merchandise and prints Continue reading...

The juvenile humpback was spotted near Bundjalung National Park in what experts say is a rare, but not unprecedented event While the case of a whale found 11km upstream in a New South Wales river this weekend was unusual, it was not unprecedented, experts say. The juvenile humpback, which swam into the Clarence River on the state’s mid-north coast and later died, was towed out to sea on Sunday, according to NSW authorities. Continue reading...

Alejandro G Iñárritu’s film may be about to become one of the biggest bombs Hollywood has ever seen – but it is destined to be re-evaluated with time * This article contains spoilers for Digger I feel for film critics, I really do. Tom Cruise’s latest film Digger put them in an impossible position: you can’t really talk about it without spoiling what makes it, in my eyes, a masterpiece. Or completely terrible – as many, many critics have argued over the last week, without being fully free to say why. That is not their fault: media screenings around the world opened with a plea from Warner Bros to not spoil the film’s central reveal. This seems like it may have been a misstep, because curiosity and Cruise alone were clearly not enough to get bums on seats. Digger is now projected to lose around $150m, after taking a paltry $20m globally in its opening weekend. Warner Bros is trying to make the best of a bad situation, first crowing about the stinker reviews – “insufferable” and “smug” have been repeated a lot – then pivoting to a new sell: the Yanks don’t get it, so it must be good. Continue reading...

* Roosters’ halfback among six debutants in Kevin Walters’ squad * Isaah Yeo and Isabelle Kelly named men’s and women’s captains Isaah Yeo will delay pectoral surgery to be captain for Australia’s Rugby League World Cup campaign, after coach Kevin Walters announced a 23-man squad that includes Sydney Roosters halfback Sam Walker. Fresh off NRL premiership glory, Walker, who is one of six debutants in the squad, will be locked in a four-way battle with Cameron Munster, Tom Dearden and Mitchell Moses for a spot in the Kangaroos’ halves. Continue reading...

The actor, who is performing on the West End, was filmed telling theatre fans ‘you can’t come 20 times and sit in the front row, it’ll drive me mad’ Gillian Anderson has come under fire after the actor was filmed telling a group of fans that they were “distracting” her by repeatedly sitting in the front row while she performs in London’s West End. The Sex Education and X-Files star was filmed outside the Soho Place theatre where she’s performing in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, telling a group of fans: “You guys cannot sit in the front row. I do not care; you cannot sit in the front row. It’s so distracting.” Continue reading...

Alejandro G Iñárritu’s critically panned satire took just $20m globally in its opening weekend, against a reported $150m production budget and $100m marketing spend Digger has flopped in its opening weekend with a $20m global box office, handing Tom Cruise one of the worst debuts of his career and serving as a bitter final note for Warner Bros as a standalone studio. Alejandro G Iñárritu’s critically panned satire grossed a paltry $8m at the North American box office. Cruise is typically a big draw overseas, but international sales – $12m from 74 markets – were also weak. Continue reading...

* Batter makes 111 against Cricket South Africa Invitation XI * Three-match Test series starts in Durban on Friday The indefatigable Marnus Labuschagne has responded to all the hand-wringing over whether he merits a place in Australia’s Test future by just doing what he likes doing best – scoring runs. After a difficult year, the under-pressure 32-year-old chose the most timely moment to score his first century in any form of cricket for 11 months in Potchefstroom, just five days before Australia play their first Test in South Africa since the 2018 ball-tampering scandal. Continue reading...

Sydney Roosters wing completed a remarkable clean sweep of honours in two years in the game as he heads back to union with Japanese club Saitama Wild Knights “Mark’s a bit of an adventurer,” the Roosters coach, Trent Robinson, volunteered about his departing winger Mark Nawaqanitawase, perhaps the most-liked player in the NRL, after his final appearance. The 26-year-old has completed rugby league in a little over two years, having secured a premiership in Sunday’s grand final, to go along with State of Origin and Kangaroos accolades. He finished with an extraordinary 47 tries in 47 NRL matches, including seven in his last four. Continue reading...

Annual population growth for the North American nation has slowed to just 0.5% – and the economy is ‘adjusting’ * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Would slashing net overseas migration “trash the economy” or deliver the necessary population “reset” to restore Australia’s stagnant living standards? Labor and an ascendant One Nation have presented starkly different visions of what a migration program in the national interest looks like. Continue reading...

Global campaign group 350.org urges Cop31 hosts to announce a coal phase-out date and national roadmaps to get off fossil fuels * Sign up for climate and environment editor Adam Morton’s free Clear Air newsletter here The hosts of the next major United Nation climate conference, Turkey and Australia, are facing criticism for being partners in a coal supply chain while remaining near silent on the need for a global deal to rapidly get off fossil fuels. With the Cop31 summit in the Turkish Mediterranean city of Antalya just a month away, the two countries running the fortnight-long talks have been accused by activists of a “vacuum of action” on plans for a transition away from coal, gas and oil – a key goal of many nations at the talks. Continue reading...

Residents of Dalby may soon live beside a $31bn datacentre. The premier sees ‘opportunity’ for the state – but others fear AI’s global creep From the veranda on his bush block, Denver Kanowski has watched resources companies come and go from rural Queensland for 70 years. The home cost him $800, and lets him live how he likes, in nature. It’s also in the middle of a gasfield, not far from the Linc Energy contamination site, down the road from a coalmine and three gas power plants. Sign up for a weekly email featuring our best reads Continue reading...

Each month Guardian Australia editors and critics pick the upcoming titles they have devoured – or can’t wait to get their hands on *** Continue reading...

Even the greatest prophets had questions but they learned to wait to see the full picture We live in an age that has become profoundly uncomfortable with not knowing. A delayed email reply becomes a source of anxiety. A medical symptom is immediately searched online. We refresh news feeds, ask AI for instant explanations, and expect the answers to life’s biggest questions to arrive at the same speed as food deliveries. Continue reading...

* Newcastle fullback was brilliant in 19-18 loss to Sydney Roosters * Ponga pays tribute to fans who packed into Accor Stadium The emotion of the week finally took its toll on Kalyn Ponga, who starred for Newcastle despite their 19-18 defeat to the Sydney Roosters in the NRL grand final. The Knights fullback was responsible for many of the match’s most dazzling moments – a constant menace with ball in hand on both sides of the field. He saved a four-pointer when pressuring Mark Nawaqanitawase’s aerial put-down in the first half. He ran away for a length-of-the-field try, the undoubted highlight of a thrilling encounter. The pink headgear was impossible to miss. Continue reading...

* Roosters claim 16th title with 19-18 win in Sydney * Mark Nawaqanitawase scores twice after Newcastle held 12-0 lead The Sydney Roosters are back on top of the NRL, coming from behind to claim their first premiership in seven years with a 19-18 defeat of Newcastle. After they trailed 12-0 just before half-time at Accor Stadium on Sunday night, the Roosters dominated the second half before having to hold on late for their 16th title. Continue reading...

* Updates from the men’s premiership decider at Accor Stadium * Kick-off time in Sydney is 7.30pm AEDT/6.30pm AEST * Any thoughts? Get in touch with an email Hello everybody and welcome to live coverage of Sydney Roosters v Newcastle Knights from Accor Stadium. Kick-off in Sydney is scheduled for 7.30pm local time (6.30pm AEST). The showpiece fixture in Australian rugby league brings together one of the unlikelier pairings in the sport’s history. Continue reading...

* Dominant Roosters run in seven tries in 30-6 romp at Accor Stadium * Brydie Parker hat-trick helps ensure Roosters finish season unbeaten The Sydney Roosters ruined the farewell of NRLW great Ali Brigginshaw by blitzing the Brisbane Broncos in the grand final as the Tricolours completed their perfect season with a 30-6 victory clinched by a six-tries-to-none first half. The Roosters’ third premiership closes the gap on the four won by the Broncos, with the two most successful clubs in the NRLW’s nine-year history now sharing seven titles. But this season was the best the competition has seen, after the Roosters won all 11 regular season matches and their two finals. Continue reading...

* Updates from the women’s premiership decider at Accor Stadium * Kick-off time in Sydney is 4pm AEDT/3pm AEST * Any thoughts? Get in touch with an email Hello and welcome to the 2026 NRLW grand final. If someone told me at the start of the season that they predicted a Roosters v Broncos grand final, I would have said “Well that’s a boring prediction, why are you even telling me this?” Yes, we’ve ended up where we always expected to end up and for the fourth time in the history of the competition, we have these two foundation clubs meeting in the final. The last time they met, the Roosters came out on top by 14 points. In fact the minor premiership winning Roosters are undefeated coming into the final, with a whopping differential of 318 in just 11 games of the regular season. Continue reading...

Treasurer says ‘very substantial and intensifying pressure’ on federal budget as he points finger at private sector for driving up inflation amid Middle East conflict * Get our new political email, free app or daily news podcast Jim Chalmers has warned of “very substantial and intensifying” economic pressures on the horizon but insists he’s not planning for a recession, as he prepares to find new ways to cut the budget ahead of its mid-year update. The treasurer on Sunday called on critics of government spending to name the services that should be cut, as he points the finger at the private sector for driving up inflation in Australia amid the protracted conflict in the Middle East. Continue reading...

Experts warn it’s getting harder to find big discounts and borrowers will need to talk tough about leaving their mortgage lender for another * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Mortgage holders may save hundreds of dollars a month by switching banks now that the lowest interest rates are close to 6%, after the Reserve Bank of Australia lifted its key rate to the highest level in 15 years. But professionals warn it’s getting harder to find big discounts. Continue reading...

The government sees an opportunity to regain city seats with targeted policies such as allowing dogs in pubs and extending trading hours * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Pauline’s journey to Australia was long. Part of the Chinese Hakka minority targeted during Indonesia’s invasion of Timor-Leste, she went first to Jakarta, then Portugal, before finally making her way to Melbourne in 1984. Since then, the 76-year-old has lived in one of North Richmond’s high-rise public housing towers, living what she describes as a “quiet, peaceful life”. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Images show deep cuts and damage to tails and fins, as experts warn the migrating species often aren’t able to avoid a collision Gruesome images of adult and juvenile humpback whales along Australia’s east coast with slash and gouge injuries from boat and propeller strikes highlight what experts say is a growing problem, as the population booms 60 years after the ban on whaling. Missing tail parts, deep red lacerations and shocking injuries to the spine of a whale calf can be clearly seen on the images, gathered by WWF Australia and shared with the Guardian. Continue reading...

Inflation is again being used as an excuse for acts of vandalism on some of Australia’s important institutions * Get our new political email, free app or daily news podcast When the Reserve Bank of Australia lifted its cash rate on Tuesday, with more rate rises in the pipeline, it did so ostensibly to combat an inflation rate swollen by petrol prices and gas bills, not by avaricious wage claims. Apart from a few beneficiaries, among them Pauline Hanson, the RBA’s move amounts to an act of pointless aggression against the majority of Australians. An overheating economy is not the cause of the recent inflation spike. Its cause is a war of choice in the Gulf. Since US and Israeli bombs began falling on Iran, the strait of Hormuz has turned into a toll booth, shipping insurers have tripled their premiums, and tankers have been diverted around the Horn of Africa. In Australia, a tiny minority connected to the energy oligopoly raked in exorbitant profits while the vast majority felt the pain. The interest rate hike deepens the majority’s pain without delivering much gain. Continue reading...

Prices beyond our control, climate change, big tech, crime, the government itself. It’s no wonder people are so furious * Get our new political email, free app or daily news podcast Who’s feeling overwhelmed? Going to the supermarket and petrol station was already stressful. Now interest rates have gone up, with another increase predicted, and Christmas is coming. Continue reading...

The 20 best residential gardens have been revealed in the first-ever Landscape Australia awards shortlist. Jury chair Emily Wong said each project was a response to urgent issues like the climate crisis, fire and flood resilience, and the loss of biodiversity. They saw gardens as ‘part of a larger living commons that supports different ecologies and also … the future of Australian cities’. Wong also noted that private gardens take up a large quantity of space in Australian cities. ‘So really, these gardens are about seeing the design as a contribution to shared infrastructure’ Continue reading...

Conor Curran’s first date with Chris lasted nine hours but their relationship remained casual. Then, when Conor was at his most vulnerable, Chris was there for him * Find more stories from the moment I knew series At 29 I had lost my career in hospitality because of Covid and decided to throw my hat in the ring as a contestant on MasterChef Australia. By the time I was eliminated in 2021, restaurants still weren’t open and I didn’t know what to do with my life. My lease was coming to an end in Melbourne and I wasn’t doing well with the lockdowns and people recognising me from TV. So I decided to retreat to my father’s place in Adelaide for a while. By early 2022 I was dating a guy but, after a few months, he ghosted me suddenly. Continue reading...

The Australian singer-songwriter on misheard Killing Heidi lyrics, going solo after a chat with Stevie Nicks, and being a shit secret keeper What has been your most memorable interaction with a fan? When Killing Heidi first started playing again in 2016, after many, many, many years – we were kind of broken up, hiatus, call it what you want, but we didn’t have any plans to play ever again – I was super nervous. It felt like the first time. It felt like a really big deal. And the response was fantastic. We had these big sold-out shows. I looked out at one crowd and there was a little girl holding a sign that said, “I’m Ella too, I was named after you.” I was like, “Oh my god!” That was not the last time it happened either – I’ve met so many little Ellas where the parents said, “She’s an Ella because of you!” It is amazing. Sign up for a weekly email featuring our best reads Continue reading...

No matter how brilliant Sydney might prove to be on Sunday night, the 2026 grand final will be remembered for Newcastle’s presence in the decider Grudging favourite the Sydney Roosters meet rugby league’s forgotten child the Newcastle Knights in the NRL grand final on Sunday night. The recipe is delicious, its concoction somehow spiritual: the effect of the combined crossings of every finger in the Hunter Valley, urging just one more win in the Knights’ improbable run to the decider. Whatever the result, and no matter how brilliant the Roosters might prove to be, the occasion will be remembered for the Knights’ presence. They are, of course, outsiders against the formidable tricolours. The underdogs finished seventh, and the finals have already delivered them three upsets against the Rabbitohs, the Warriors and the Panthers. This Knights’ tale gleams more brightly one year after their wooden spoon. Continue reading...

BoM expects falls of up to 90mm in parts of Victoria, as severe weather system continues to sweep the southern states A severe weather system continues to dump heavy rain into sodden riverine catchments across Victoria, sparking widespread warnings of transport disruption and delays. The Bureau of Meteorology has issued a flood watch for most of Victoria including the north-east, central, south-west and north-west, as well as parts of Gippsland. Continue reading...

Company says it is reviewing 50 petabytes of data after its agents accessed websites including Medicare without authorisation * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast OpenAI says its review in response to the Medicare and Hugging Face agent attacks is costing the company more than US$500,000 per day, as it deploys AI to examine data that would take a human 66m years to read. The company has warned the review is ongoing, and more organisations may be informed they’ve been targeted in the near future. Continue reading...

Melbourne Theatre Company While the cast is excellent, a play that sends us back to artificial intelligence’s genesis moment should feel more human than this It can be fiendishly difficult to write plays about contemporary obsessions, not least because they can shift and mutate in the time it takes to mount a production. A clever solution is to set your work at the point in history where said obsession began; that way you can still create resonant theatre within more stable boundaries. Eliza, Australian playwright Tom Holloway’s new play for MTC, cleaves to this formula, focusing on the German-American computer scientist Joseph Weizenbaum and the firstlings of AI. Weizenbaum (Dan Spielman) is working at MIT in 1966 with colleague Ron (Hamish Michael) and secretary Becky (Manali Datar) when he comes up with a programming language that arguably represents the birth of artificial intelligence – although he’d be the first person to argue it doesn’t. Weizenbaum creates a program that mimics the language and tone of psychoanalysis, parroting phrases and asking open-ended questions of the “how do you feel about that?” variety. In this way, he aims to debunk Alan Turing’s theory that machines may one day learn to think. Continue reading...

* Sneak preview shown in video after pieces revealed over past week * Cockatoo-inspired emblem to be officially unveiled on Monday The Brisbane 2032 Olympics and Paralympics emblems have been accidentally leaked by the Games’ official YouTube channel, three days before its own big reveal. Pieces of the puzzle had been revealed across Queensland over the past week with the full logos to come together during an official unveiling on Monday. Continue reading...

Early on Sunday clocks in NSW, Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania and the ACT will go forward one hour. Here’s what you need to know – and how it will affect you * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast It’s that time of year again: clocks will move forward one hour on Sunday in many parts of Australia as daylight saving time comes into effect. Here’s what you need to know. Continue reading...

As the weather warms up, renewable and refillable brews can help reduce the environmental cost of a cold one * Change by degrees offers life hacks and sustainable living tips each Saturday to help reduce your household’s carbon footprint * Got a question or tip for reducing household emissions? Email us at changebydegrees@theguardian.com It’s no secret that Australians love getting on the beers: we consume 69m litres of the stuff every year. With that comes a significant packaging and environmental footprint, as commercially produced drinks generate emissions in both production and transportation. Australians drink and dispose of an estimated 17bn bottles and cans a year, fewer than half of which are recycled. Continue reading...

The Guardian’s weekend wrap of essential reads from the past seven days, selected by Miles Herbert * Get this in your inbox every weekend. Sign up for Five Great Reads here Hello and welcome to the weekend. The Guardian’s range was on display this week across these five very different stories. Grab a coffee and dig in, digest, and reflect on harrowing accounts of Trump’s immigration crackdown, investigations into modern motherhood and masculinity, and for a bit of weekend fun, we leave you with some celebrity gossip. Continue reading...

The epicentre was at Leongatha, 130km south-east of Melbourne, with residents reporting houses shaking just after 2am * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast A magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck Victoria in the early hours of Saturday morning, shaking Melbourne and waking people across the whole region. Geoscience Australia said it detected an earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 4.8 at 2.01am near Leongatha, 130km south-east of Melbourne, with the tremors felt across the city’s eastern suburbs. Continue reading...

Australians are conversing less every year, with a recent study showing we lost an average of 338 spoken words each day between 2005 and 2019 We talk a lot about losing our ability to write as a result of AI. I’m convinced our greatest loss might be our ability to listen. Listening to different views and entering into different worlds is integral to our humanity. But Australians are conversing less every year. While rapidly evolving AI tools and chatbots promise faster responses and so-called “empathetic” listening, a recent study showed we lost an average of 338 spoken words each day between 2005 and 2019. That adds up to a staggering loss of 120,000 spoken words per person, compared with the year before. Continue reading...

The unbeaten Sydney aim to avenge last year’s shock defeat to Brisbane as the league farewells pioneer Ali Brigginshaw and stalwarts including Millie Elliott The tears fell and the bells tolled at the traditional NRLW grand final press conference on Friday, underscoring why the season decider marks the end of one era and the beginning of another. The unbeaten Roosters are looking to avenge last year’s shock grand final defeat to Brisbane, as the game mourns the retirement of Ali Brigginshaw. The Broncos playmaker runs on to an NRLW field this weekend for the last time after two decades as a pioneer of women’s rugby league. Continue reading...

Home affairs department orders all federal government agencies to conduct review of ‘legacy technology’ amid fallout from AI agent hacks * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast The Australian government faces significant “tech debt” that could bring a big bill for taxpayers after the OpenAI Medicare breach, as government agencies will need to fortify their defences against future attacks by AI agents. This week, the home affairs department ordered all federal government agencies to conduct a “legacy technology stocktake” that requires a plan for each agency to “reduce legacy technology systems” to a level within the agency’s risk tolerance and appetite, the direction stated. Continue reading...

‘AI factories’ developer on track to launch the second-biggest IPO in Australian history, but investors warn its forecasts are ‘a little bit of a fairytale’ * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast From her balcony in Launceston, Kayla Thompson can see the buzz of construction at what will soon be one of Australia’s first AI factories. Her teenage stepchildren get an even clearer view from their classroom window. Like many of her neighbours, Thompson didn’t realise Firmus Technologies had an ambitious plan to build datacentres in Tasmania until after construction began. The Australian company was on a mission, and preparing to list on the ASX later this month after an anticipated initial public offering designed to raise $7bn from investors. Continue reading...