News

UK agrees to drop ‘backdoor’ mandate for Apple

US director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said on Monday the UK had agreed to drop its mandate for iPhone maker Apple to provide a “backdoor” that would have...

Let’s not waste our multibillion-dollar biotech opportunity

Australia’s life sciences industry is a quiet and unfortunately, regularly misunderstood achiever. With billions in annual revenues, the sector not only delivers world-class research, it also provides everyday Australians...

Trump administration in talks to take 10% stake in Intel

The Trump administration is in talks to take a 10 per cent stake in Intel by converting some or all of the struggling company’s Chips Act grants into equity,...

Govt R&D spend to slide after post-pandemic bump

Government R&D spending as a share of GDP is set to continue its slide after a brief bump over the last two years, with new data forecasting expenditure will...

Productivity tsar hoses down sovereign AI support hopes

The Productivity Commission says artificial intelligence will be as transformative electricity, the internal combustion engine and the Internet, but is not convinced sovereign AI development should be targeted by...

Absorptive capacity: The key to R&D collaboration problem

For decades, Australian policy has been anchored on a familiar refrain: universities must do more to engage with the end-users of research. The underlying assumption has been that if...

Cathy Foley named next ATSE president

Former chief scientist Cathy Foley has been appointed the next president of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering (ATSE), replacing outgoing president Katherine Woodthorpe. Dr Foley, a...

‘Failure on top of failure’: Welfare systems on the brink

Crumbling technology, design flaws and gaping governance gaps in the federal government’s welfare compliance system mean the validity of its automated decisions can not be assured as it impacts...

DTA flags AI ‘PoC hell’ as emerging APS risk

Federal government agencies may have barely scratched the surface with artificial intelligence, but those that have are increasingly finding themselves trapped in a cycle of endless proof of concept...

The Gig Guide: WA names Science and Technology Council members

The Western Australian government has appointed a new 13-member Science and Technology Council to steer the growth of the state’s research and innovation ecosystem. Chaired by newly appointed WA...

Accenture acquires Australian cyber outfit CyberCX

CyberCX, one of Australia’s largest privately-owned cybersecurity firms, will be acquired by tech consulting giant Accenture less than six years after it formed to challenge the US behemoths. Subject...