Technology

A US court fined Meta $942 million over children, then ruled it could not make the company check anyone's age. Australia already forces that, and eight in 10 under-16s are still on.

Judge Bryan Biedscheid called Meta a public nuisance akin to air pollution, adding a $567 million fund to the $375 million a jury imposed in March.

National

The cookers have found their first pandemic since Covid, and they are treating a dead seabird like a cover-up

Australia's bird flu detections went from 28 to 175 in eight days, and the comment sections filled with people who have been waiting for this day.

world

A court has just told the President of the United States he is a tenant. His ballroom is due to open four months before he has to move out.

The DC Circuit halted construction 2-1, ruling only Congress can authorise reshaping the White House, and stayed its order for a Supreme Court appeal.

Technology

The robot dogs everyone watched get kicked on YouTube are now $300,000 security guards. Australia is building the world's second-biggest pile of data centres for them to patrol.

Boston Dynamics says data centre interest has surged, with Spot now selling for up to $300,000 and paying for itself inside two years.

Technology

Kmart sold out of $89 camera glasses in a week. The privacy watchdog now being asked to examine them has no power over the people wearing them.

Attorney-General Michelle Rowland has written to the Privacy Commissioner about the Anko glasses, warning women and children could be disproportionately affected by covert recording.

National

One Nation wants the ABC stripped of $1.2 billion over a skit about Gina Rinehart. Her money bought the party its plane, and about 20 flights before that.

Senator Sean Bell says the segment proves the ABC should go subscription-only, ten days after Hanson's register showed Rinehart paid her European flights.

National

Albanese said he would seek the states' agreement on data centre rules — Bowen says Canberra will legislate over them

National Cabinet has not met, and Queensland and the Northern Territory had already broken ranks at the energy ministers' meeting before it.

National

Hanson's 130,000 migration cap only applies to permanent visas — a cut of 55,000, not 570,000

One Nation's own website still advertises the policy as a cut of 570,000, and Hanson says backpackers, short-term workers and tourists are all exempt.

National

The test crashed on writing day. Now ministers want to bring back pen and paper.

Reading fell in Years 5, 7 and 9 while Year 3 numeracy hit its lowest average since the test was reset in 2023.

National

Overdose deaths are climbing again and the drugs driving it have no treatment

More than 2000 Australians died of a drug overdose in 2024, with cocaine deaths up 40 per cent and amphetamine deaths up 29 per cent.

National

Jetstar will scrap the free 7kg carry-on and charge up to $52 for an overhead bag

From 2 February 2027 only a bag that fits under the seat travels free, with overhead lockers costing between $25 and $52 a flight.

Technology

Canva bolted AI onto a design tool and was ranked the world's second-biggest AI platform

A report has put the Sydney design company second in the world behind ChatGPT, ahead of Gemini, DeepSeek, Claude and Grok.