AI
CBA boss warns against weakening copyright for AI
David Ross reports in The Australian that Commonwealth Bank CEO Matt Comyn has flagged risks in a Productivity Commission plan to let AI firms mine copyrighted works without payment.
While announcing a $10.25 billion profit and new AI deals with OpenAI and Anthropic, he warned against watering down IP protections.
The proposed “fair dealing” carve-out for text and data mining is set to be discussed at a productivity roundtable led by Treasurer Jim Chalmers next week.
Labor weighs AI training data transparency rules
The Albanese government is considering forcing tech giants like Google, Meta and OpenAI to reveal what content trains their AI models, giving Australian creators more power to enforce copyright.
According to Ronald Mizen in The Australian Financial Review, a new system to help smaller rights holders get paid is also on the table.
The platforms are pushing back, warning the move could expose trade secrets. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has signalled he is ready to take on Big Tech.
Television
ABC chief eyes homegrown hit to boost funding
ABC boss Hugh Marks is thinking big… as in, Bluey-big.
According to Calum Jaspan in The Sydney Morning Herald, Marks wants the broadcaster to create its own global franchise, pointing to MasterChef’s billion-dollar revenue and Bluey’s runaway success as models.
He says two Bluey-level hits in the next five years could secure long-term funding for ABC content while keeping its radio and news services strong.
Technology
ACMA blocks Polymarket after targeting claims
ACMA has ordered ISPs to block Polymarket, after a Crikey report by Cam Wilson alleged the crypto betting site was paying Australian influencers to promote wagers tied to local events without a licence.
Already banned in several countries, Polymarket claims to geoblock Australians, but ACMA says the restrictions are easy to bypass.
The regulator found the service in breach of the Interactive Gambling Act and ordered ISPs to cut access.
Apple pushes back on Musk App Store bias claims
Apple has rejected Elon Musk’s accusation that its App Store favours OpenAI, calling it “free and fair of bias.”
As Liv McMahon and Tom Gerken write on the BBC, Musk, who owns X and AI app Grok, has threatened legal action and reignited his feud with OpenAI boss Sam Altman.
Apple says rival AI apps like DeepSeek and Perplexity have topped its charts since its 2024 ChatGPT partnership, while Musk questions why X and Grok are absent from the “Must Have” list.
Social Media
YouTube trials AI to spot underage users
YouTube is testing an AI system in the US that can guess if you’re under 18, even if your account says otherwise.
According to Todd Spangler in Variety, the platform says the move is about strengthening protections for younger users.
The “age-estimation model” is part of Google’s broader push to tighten safeguards for minors online — and will no doubt catch the eye of Australian politicians given the current debate over social media bans for kids.
Radio
Why Gen Next is tuning out of traditional radio
Radio consultant Dave Charles has taken to Radio Today claiming younger listeners are leaving AM/FM behind, with Edison Research showing podcasts now match radio’s share among US 18–29s, a dramatic shift from a decade ago.
The biggest gains are in 13–34s, where spoken word audio has more than doubled since 2014. Charles points to the boom in video podcasts, with YouTube leading and Spotify reporting 350 million users and rapid growth.
For legacy radio, he warns, the battle for young audiences is increasingly being fought on screens.
Retail
Amazon takes on Temu with budget shopping launch
Amazon has rolled out “Amazon Haul” in Australia, offering thousands of fashion, beauty, home and pet items under $25 via its app.
Pitched as a “trusted” alternative to Shein, Temu and AliExpress, the service aims to give shoppers more low-price options while keeping them in Amazon’s ecosystem.
But as Jessica Yun writes in The Age, whether that will be enough to lure Temu devotees away from their endless scroll of 99-cent phone cases remains to be seen.