Wednesday, May 20, 2026
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Australia

The US-Japan Critical Minerals Pact Has a Gap Shaped Like Australia
Technology

The US-Japan Critical Minerals Pact Has a Gap Shaped Like Australia

Washington and Tokyo signed a rare earths deal that barely mentions the world's largest lithium producer. Beijing noticed.
7 min read 2 months ago
Selling Your Identity to Train AI: The Gig Economy's Unsettling Trade
Geopolitics

Selling Your Identity to Train AI: The Gig Economy's Unsettling Trade

People in developing countries are earning a few dollars filming their walks and selling their phone calls. They're signing away rights to their biometric identity forever.
8 min read 2 months ago
The AI Tax on Your Power Bill: Data Centres Are Driving Up Electricity Costs
Geopolitics

The AI Tax on Your Power Bill: Data Centres Are Driving Up Electricity Costs

Tech giants promise a revolution, but Australian households are footing the bill for the water and power their data centres consume.
6 min read 2 months ago
Gold's worst week since 2011: the Australian headlines miss half the story
Geopolitics

Gold's worst week since 2011: the Australian headlines miss half the story

As ASX gold stocks slide, Chinese retail buyers and the PBOC are still accumulating. The divergence tells you more than the price drop.
7 min read 2 months ago
The $13.6 Million Payday That Made Mark Barnaba Australia's Highest-Paid Director
Geopolitics

The $13.6 Million Payday That Made Mark Barnaba Australia's Highest-Paid Director

How a clever options grant at a UK explorer, a transformative acquisition, and the ASX's own governance rules combined to produce a payout most executives can only dream of.
9 min read 2 months ago
The $300 energy rebate is ending. Here's what your July bill will actually look like
Geopolitics

The $300 energy rebate is ending. Here's what your July bill will actually look like

Wholesale electricity prices are falling, but the maths still works against most households. We break down what July will cost.
8 min read 2 months ago
ASIC v Star: Federal Court Ruling Rewrites the Rules for Australian Directors
Geopolitics

ASIC v Star: Federal Court Ruling Rewrites the Rules for Australian Directors

Justice Lee's ruling against Star's executives carries a message for every Australian boardroom: ignorance of risk is no longer a defence.
7 min read 2 months ago
Cameron McEvoy shatters 17-year 50m freestyle world record
Wealth

Cameron McEvoy shatters 17-year 50m freestyle world record

Australian swimmer breaks César Cielo's supersuit-era record in textile suit after overhauling sprint methodology
5 min read 2 months ago
Trump AI framework tells states to back off as critics warn of accountability gap
Trump

Trump AI framework tells states to back off as critics warn of accountability gap

The White House wants to preempt state AI laws before they exist. The constitutional and practical problems run deeper than the four-page document suggests.
7 min read 2 months ago
Naomi Osaka and the question that haunts every working mother
Culture

Naomi Osaka and the question that haunts every working mother

After losing in the first round at Miami, the four-time Grand Slam champion asked herself whether the tour was worth the time away from her daughter.
8 min read 2 months ago
Ninety per cent dependent, thirty days deep: Australia's fuel supply chain unravels
Geopolitics

Ninety per cent dependent, thirty days deep: Australia's fuel supply chain unravels

The Strait of Hormuz blockade has exposed what economists have warned about for decades. Australia's fuel security is a policy fiction propped up by long shipping routes and optimistic assumptions.
9 min read 2 months ago
Property profits hit record as first home buyers face an inheritance-shaped barrier
Geopolitics

Property profits hit record as first home buyers face an inheritance-shaped barrier

For the first time in 15 years, more than 90% of house resales in every Australian capital turned a profit. The median Sydney house profit is now $750,000.
9 min read 2 months ago