US
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.
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.
Geopolitics
Qatar faces 13% GDP crash as Hormuz crisis threatens QIA asset sales
Capital Economics forecasts the largest contraction in the Gulf region as Iranian attacks wipe out 17% of LNG output, forcing Doha to consider liquidating prime real estate and banking stakes in London, New York, and Frankfurt.
Geopolitics
Musk offers to pay TSA salaries as shutdown chaos enters day 36
The billionaire's offer is illegal under federal law. TSA workers received $0 paychecks last week and absence rates are spiking.
Wealth
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.
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.
Work
Cuba's Power Grid Collapses Again as US Oil Blockade Tightens
Third nationwide blackout this month plunges 11 million people into darkness. Trump says he will soon have 'the honour of taking Cuba.'
AI
Rocky and Grace: What Project Hail Mary Gets Right About the Limits of Intelligence
Andy Weir's blockbuster rests on a quietly radical thesis: that all intelligent civilizations hit the same ceiling, discover the same technologies, and face the same existential threats. Two writers argue about what this means for AI.
Culture
Project Hail Mary and the Economics of Competence Porn
Ryan Gosling's sci-fi blockbuster is breaking records because it understands something Hollywood forgot: audiences want to watch smart people figure things out.
Geopolitics
Petrol at $2.40? No wonder BYD's phones are ringing off the hook
Soaring fuel prices from the Strait of Hormuz blockade are driving a spike in EV sales. BYD and GWM report significant increases as Chinese brands now dominate Australia's top 10 sellers.
AI
The case against AI therapists is now in evidence
New research quantifies what regulators should have anticipated: chatbots designed to be agreeable are harming people in psychological distress.
Geopolitics
Six fuel tankers bound for Australia cancelled as Iran blockade disrupts supply chain
Energy Minister says 74 of 81 expected ships will still arrive, but warns of 'bumps' ahead as Strait of Hormuz blockade cuts 20 per cent of global oil supply.