News

100 mid-career researchers awarded Future Fellowships

One hundred new research projects exploring areas like the critical metals in underwater volcanoes and bringing down the cost of green hydrogen have secured backing in the latest round...

Canva buys local GenAI startup Leonardo.AI

Leonardo.AI, the Australian developer of a rapidly growing generative AI art platform, will be acquired by graphic design giant Canva for an undisclosed sum. Although only launched in December 2022,...

Govt defends blue hydrogen funding amid green push

The Albanese government has defended its investment in a controversial coal-to-hydrogen project with the Victorian state government because it honours a Turnbull-era commitment to Japanese partners. Pre-commercialisation support for...

No ‘measurable impact’: Female Founders grants grounded

The federal government’s only program for female startup founders will not continue after internal analysis determined more than $35 million in direct grants and mentoring for almost one thousand...

Brisbane vs Chicago: Labor’s quantum-sized dilemma

Australia is home to some of the world’s best quantum computing talent. Diraq, Silicon Quantum Computing, Q-Ctrl and Quantum Brilliance are all working at the forefront of this critically...

Accenture hits $2.5b in tax office tech work

The tax office will pay Accenture $45 million a year to manage its enterprise operations, app development, infrastructure and DevOps, pushing the tech services giant’s total work for the...

Albanese reshuffle boost for Defence Industry, Cyber and FMiA

Defence Industry minister Pat Conroy has been elevated to Cabinet in Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s ministerial reshuffle announced on Sunday, underscoring the central importance of government’s AUKUS-related industrial development...

CSIRO’s Data61 braces for job losses, funding crunch

Researchers at the CSIRO’s Data61 business unit are bracing for job losses and research roll-backs as a funding crunch claims dozens of roles elsewhere at the agency and ends...

Anxiety and hope flavour the ‘democratisation of AI’

AI disinformation in local communities may pose a more significant threat than Taylor Swift deepfakes or Biden robocalls, subtly undermining societal trust where it’s most vulnerable.  “Especially so in...