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Today's Briefing
AI & TechnologySpotify has had a massive week. The streaming giant struck a deal with Universal Music allowing fan-made AI covers and remixes, launched an ElevenLabs-powered audiobook creation tool, and debuted a new desktop app for creating personal podcasts — taking direct aim at Google's NotebookLM. It also added AI-powered Q&A and briefing generation features to its podcast library. Spotify is positioning itself as the everything platform for audio, not just music. Meanwhile, a secretive startup called Hark raised $700 million in a Series A round for what it describes as a "universal" AI interface. No one outside the company knows exactly what it does — but someone clearly believes it's worth betting big on. Anthropic, by contrast, is being unusually transparent: the Claude maker says it's on track for its first ever profitable quarter. Trump has delayed a new AI security executive order, saying he doesn't want to slow the industry down. That's good news for US AI firms, but it leaves security gaps unaddressed as AI deployment accelerates. Australian Business & FinanceThe ASX is set to climb today, helped by falling oil prices on hopes of a US-Iran nuclear deal. Those same deal hopes are pushing crude lower globally, which could ease some pressure on Australian fuel costs in the weeks ahead. The City of Perth is in the middle of what appears to be a governance crisis, with the Lord Mayor refusing to answer questions about what's gone wrong internally. Local government dysfunction may seem niche, but it has real implications for business investment and planning approvals in WA's capital. Watch this one closely. On the federal politics front, Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek flagged that a second IS-linked group could face prosecution under Australian law. That follows earlier action against another organisation and signals the government is prepared to escalate. World Markets & Global BusinessNvidia posted another record earnings result — and markets shrugged. Investors had priced in perfection, and even blockbuster numbers weren't enough to move the stock higher. Jensen Huang, meanwhile, is talking up a brand new $200 billion market opportunity for Nvidia beyond data centres. He's betting on physical AI and robotics as the next wave. Walmart is warning that US shoppers are pulling back. Higher petrol prices are biting, and the retail giant says consumer spending is softening. For Australian exporters and businesses with US exposure, that's a signal worth watching. Iran is stepping up claims over the Strait of Hormuz, the critical shipping chokepoint through which roughly 20% of the world's oil passes. Any escalation there would send energy prices higher almost immediately. The Big PictureAir France and Airbus have been found guilty of manslaughter over the 2009 crash of Flight AF447, which killed 228 people. It took 17 years to reach a verdict. The ruling sets a significant legal precedent for how aviation disasters — and potentially other technology-driven failures — are prosecuted. Gonorrhoea and syphilis have hit record levels across Europe, according to new data. That's a public health story, but it also points to a broader pattern: the post-pandemic period has seen a wave of deferred health behaviours catching up all at once. Healthcare systems are under pressure in ways that aren't always visible in headline economic data. The AI plagiarism debate is getting louder. A widely-shared essay arguing that AI is simply "unauthorised plagiarism at scale" is circulating in tech circles. It's a challenge the industry hasn't convincingly answered yet — and one that will eventually land in courtrooms. Scroll down for the full story breakdowns, podcasts, and everything you need to stay ahead today.
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