Australia

Meta Deletes Facebook News Tab in Europe

On September 5th, Meta announced that it would be deleting the Facebook News tab in the UK, France, and Germany in early December. Meta’s move towards deprecation is driven by several factors. According to the company, “News makes up less than 3% of what people around the world see in their Facebook feed.” This implies […]

Factbox - Governments’ Efforts to Regulate AI Tools

Italy’s data protection agency said on Wednesday it would lift its temporary ban on OpenAI’s ChatGPT artificial intelligence (AI) technology if the U.S. company complied with data protection and privacy demands by end-April. Rapid advances in AI such as Microsoft-backed OpenAI’s ChatGPT are complicating governments’ efforts to agree on laws governing the use of the […]

Car Services Groups Warn of Unfair Competition as EU Data Plan Stalls

 (This March 31 story has been corrected to say Laurianne Krid is director general of FIA Region I, part of the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), and not director general of the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile, in paragraph 8) Car services groups on Friday warned a stalled EU proposal to ensure fair access to valuable […]

GM Plans to Phase Out Apple Carplay in EVS, With Google’s Help

 General Motors plans to phase out widely-used Apple CarPlay and Android Auto technologies that allow drivers to bypass a vehicle’s infotainment systems, shifting instead to built-in infotainment systems developed with Google for future electric vehicles. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto systems allow users to mirror their smartphone screens in a vehicle’s dashboard display. GM’s decision […]

US, Partner Countries Call for Controls to Counter Misuse of Spyware

The United States and some of its partner countries on Thursday called for strict domestic and international controls to counter the proliferation and misuse of commercial spyware. The joint statement was issued by the governments of Australia, Canada, Costa Rica, Denmark, France, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The […]

Australia's Key Financial Regulators to Review Global Banking Turmoil

Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers will convene a meeting of the country’s top financial regulators to check how the latest volatility in global financial markets could affect the country, an official in the treasurer’s office said on Tuesday. Australia’s Council of Financial Regulators (CFR) will meet on Thursday after Chalmers discussed the latest market turmoil in […]

Eyeing China, Biden and Allies Unveil Nuclear-Powered Submarine Plan for Australia

The United States, Australia and Britain unveiled details of a plan to provide Australia with nuclear-powered attack submarines from the early 2030s to counter China’s ambitions in the Indo-Pacific. Addressing a ceremony at the U.S. naval base on Monday in San Diego, accompanied by Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, […]

Australian Tech Firms Say They Don't Have Material Exposure to SVB

Several Australian and New Zealand tech firms said on Monday they did not have material exposure to Silicon Valley Bank following the failure of the U.S. startup-focused lender SVB Financial Group last week. Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the government was aware some Australian firms have been impacted but added the country’s “institutions are solid […]