News

Manufacturing plan is all froth and no beer

The government has spent the best part of a month spruiking its budget announcement of $1.5 billion for Australia’s manufacturing industry, but when Australian manufacturers raise a glass to...

Gonski calls for focus on research translation

The federal boost to university research and CSIRO funding “is a good beginning” that must be followed by a new focus on working with industry to translate institutional research...

Privacy office faces ‘remarkable’ drop in funding

The federal opposition has questioned a “remarkable” drop in support for the national privacy office in the coming years, with the organisation left waiting on whether government funding will...

Moon shots lost in Australia’s ‘adopter’ strategy

Like millions of kids around the world, I was completely and utterly captivated with the Apollo program. I was consumed with the excitement. I read everything. I watched everything...

The short timeline to a hefty 5G boost

5G technology will offer a game changing and sometimes lifesaving boost to everything from healthcare to the fashion industry. In the episode of the Verizon Age of Trust podcast...

ACCC chief seeks tighter Big Tech regulation

Competition tsar Rod Sims has pushed for further regulation of Big Tech, including strengthened merger rules and unfair practices prohibitions. Mr Sims, the chair of the Australian Competition and...

Tech adoption not creation: the PM’s digital plan

The federal government’s digital economy push is about tech adoption not tech creation, according to Prime Minister Scott Morrison. During an address to the Australian e-Commerce Virtual Summit, Mr...

$540m Business Growth Fund is officially launched

The $540 million Australian Business Growth Fund has been officially launched, despite legislation unlocking $100 million in Commonwealth funding still languishing in Parliament. The seven shareholders have all signed...

Govt must prepare for life after Big Tech: Report

The government needs to fast-track significant privacy reforms, put a cap on contracts handed to tech giants and invest in the startup sector in order to address an over-reliance...

Telstra’s Penn to lead Australian cyber strategy

A permanent 10-person advisory committee, helmed by Telstra boss Andy Penn, has been established to guide the implementation of the federal government’s $1.7 billion cybersecurity strategy. The 2020 Cyber...

ISA gets new name, members and industry focus

Innovation and Science Australia has been “refocused and refreshed”, with a new name, several new members and a focus on overseeing the federal government’s $1.5 billion manufacturing strategy. The...

Vic govt rails against FIRB reforms

The Victorian government has railed against the federal government’s proposed reforms to foreign investment rules, saying they would damage the country’s ability to attract innovation, research and development, and...

Govt readies for another go at visa processing

The federal government is getting ready to have another go at building a digital platform to handle visa processing, after its last a failed attempt to outsource these functions...

Electric vehicles, made in South Australia

Australia has an opportunity to be an exporter of electric vehicle technology and drive its modern manufacturing industry, according to ACE-Electric Vehicle Group managing director Greg McGarvie. This month’s...