Politics Archives

Victorian startups are going gangbusters – and that’s a big win for the local economy

Startup Daily - August 25, 2023 2 MIN READ

An updated report from Deloitte Access Economics has found the Victorian startup ecosystem has out- performed growth expectations from forecasts made in 2020. The report,“Scaling up: Growing the economic opportunity for Victoria’s startup ecosystem”, commissioned by startup agency, LaunchVic, concludes that pandemic tailwinds were kind to the sector with its value nearly doubling from $50… Read more »

Atlassian, Mike Cannon-Brookes, Scott Farquhar

Politics

Atlassian cofounders say ‘yes’ to Voice referendum on giving Indigenous Australians a say in Constitution

Simon Thomsen - July 17, 2023 2 MIN READ

Atlassian cofounders and co-CEOs Mike Cannon-Brookes and Scott Farquhar have backed the Australian Indigenous Voice referendum, saying it will “move us closer to meaningful reconciliation” and a more equitable nation. In a note to staff late last week, the pair said that “empowering First Nations communities is something we’ve always believed in and backed in… Read more »

Advanced facial recognition technology identifies the face of woman in bustling crowd, utilizing the power of big data analysis scanning for enhanced authentication through face. generative ai

Politics

Everyone’s on board for an Australian national ID using biometrics

Casey Tonkin - June 30, 2023 2 MIN READ

State and territory governments have agreed, with the Commonwealth, to increase their use of biometrics for identification in a bid to make the federated ID scheme more resilient to fraud and identity theft. Identification services are spread across the states and territories, that are in charge of driver licences and birth certificates, and the Commonwealth… Read more »

Politics

CHEQUE OUT TIME: the Australian government’s payments strategy plan goes digital, ending cheques by 2030

David Braue - June 9, 2023 3 MIN READ

Buoyed by dramatic changes in the way consumers pay for goods and services, Australia’s payments processing ecosystem will be overhauled based on a new strategic plan that includes the phasing out of cheques and full transition to the New Payments Platform (NPP). The newly launched Strategic Plan for Australia’s Payments System – developed through consultation with regulators,… Read more »

Politics

How the new NSW government kicked the startup sector in the guts over MVP grants

Ben Zyl - June 7, 2023 2 MIN READ

Last week we were among the many startups and small businesses who suffered a kick to the guts by the sudden (and quiet) halting of Investment NSW’ MVP Ventures grant program. In one brief email, our plans for the year were turned upside down. Only last month we publicly praised the NSW Government for its… Read more »

Politics

The Australian government is going to force Big Tech to scan your photos and emails for illegal things

David Braue - June 7, 2023 3 MIN READ

Tech giants will be forced to scan Australians’ emails, online photo libraries, cloud storage accounts and dating sites for illegal content or face fines of nearly $700,000 per day, the eSafety Commissioner has said after rejecting two proposed industry codes as inadequate. Developed by key service providers and delivered to eSafety in February for review, the problematic… Read more »

Politics

NSW strikes deal with Uber to limit surge pricing when there’s a major transport incident

Simon Thomsen - June 1, 2023 2 MIN READ

Uber’s controversial surge pricing, which has seen the US tech giant refund customers and apologise in the wake of 2014’s Lindt Cafe siege, will be capped in times of crisis under a deal with the NSW government. The agreement is part of the Transport Management Centre incident response process to deal with unplanned public transport… Read more »

Politics

Despite layoffs, Australia’s tech sector created 70,000 new jobs in the last 12 months

Simon Thomsen - May 30, 2023 2 MIN READ

Australia’s tech sector grew by 8% over the past year and despite a wave of high profile redundancies, added more than 10,000 jobs in the first quarter of 2023. The nation’s tech workforce increased by 70,000 jobs to 935,000 by February 2023, according to new research from the Tech Council of Australia (TCA). That growth… Read more »

Politics

FinTech Australia and open banking companies want the federal government to sort out a consumer data right roadmap

Simon Thomsen - May 30, 2023 3 MIN READ

Australia’s roll out of open banking under the consumer data right (CDR) is stalling ahead of the third anniversary of its introduction, with industry lobby groups and the fintech sector calling on the federal government to put in place a long sought-after roadmap for CDR implementation. FinTech Australia and the Financial Data and Technology Association… Read more »

Politics

NSW startup sector sounds the alarm as the state government turns off funding taps in pre-budget review

Simon Thomsen - May 25, 2023 5 MIN READ

The NSW startup sector has responded with dismay after the NSW government suddenly shut down a range of funding programs for early-stage companies in the wake of an expenditure review by the new Labor government. Popular programs such as the Minimum Viable Product (MVP) grant have been put on hold “as part of the sector-wide… Read more »

Politics

Here’s what the 2023 budget promises for Australian science and innovation

Kylie Walker - May 11, 2023 3 MIN READ

Australian innovation has the capacity to protect us – our environment, our digital world, our borders and our health. All of these are focuses of this year’s federal budget. But the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) sector has been sounding the alarm for years that our research system is in crisis. Reviews in progress… Read more »

Politics

3 things the Tech Council likes about the 2023 federal budget

Simon Thomsen - May 9, 2023 3 MIN READ

The Tech Council of Australia (TCA) has welcomed federal budget announcements backing skilled migration, cybersecurity and a new commercialisation fund. TCA CEO Kate Pounder said the measures by Treasurer Jim Chalmers aligned with the priorities in the Council’s pre-budget submission. “The Budget takes important steps to address the big challenges facing our country, including skills… Read more »

Politics

Budget 2023: what you need to know and what it all means at a glance

Chynthia Wijaya-Kovac & Justin Bergman - May 9, 2023 < 1 MIN READ

Treasurer Jim Chalmers has delivered his second budget with a heavy focus on cost-of-living relief for Australians who are struggling due to persistently high inflation and rising interest rates. While Chalmers says the economy should continue to create jobs and unemployment is expected to remain historically low, inflation remains the top economic concern. Chalmers says… Read more »

Politics

Budget gives startups $392 million fund to commercialise ideas, plus $101m for quantum and AI

Simon Thomsen - May 9, 2023 3 MIN READ

The 2023 federal budget has earmarked $392 million Industry Growth Program in advice and grants for startups and small businesses, to help them commercialise their ideas. The announcement by federal treasurer Jim Chalmers in the 2023 budget on Tuesday night is part of more than $500 million in funding that science and industry minister Ed Husic… Read more »

Politics

Victorians are finally getting their digital driver licences

Simon Thomsen - May 9, 2023 2 MIN READ

Victoria will join NSW, Queensland and South Australia in offering a digital licence for drivers from next year. The state government announced this week that motorists will be able to carry their licence on their phone with a digital driver licence trial in Ballarat from July before a statewide roll-out by 2024. NSW pioneered the… Read more »