11 months ago
Sky News Australia
India is the ‘fourth most important’ country in Australia’s trade
Story by Sky News Australia • 6:06 pm - 25-5-2023
Labor Senator Tony Sheldon says India is the “fourth most important” country in Australia’s trade.
“India is quite a significant player in the world; they’re now the largest country by population in the world,” he told Sky News host Sharri Markson.
“They’ve also got a significant role to play in the economy here; they are now the fourth most important part of the economy in trading terms with Australia.
“They can certainly be in a bigger and better position.”
India is the ‘fourth most important’ country in Australia’s trade
© Provided by Sky News Australia
India is the ‘fourth most important’ country in Australia’s trade
Story by Sky News Australia • 6:06 pm - 25-5-2023
Labor Senator Tony Sheldon says India is the “fourth most important” country in Australia’s trade.
“India is quite a significant player in the world; they’re now the largest country by population in the world,” he told Sky News host Sharri Markson.
“They’ve also got a significant role to play in the economy here; they are now the fourth most important part of the economy in trading terms with Australia.
“They can certainly be in a bigger and better position.”
India is the ‘fourth most important’ country in Australia’s trade
© Provided by Sky News Australia
11 months ago
AAP
Mining ready to ride boom with $2 trillion up for grabs
Story by Marion Rae • 5:27 pm - 26-5-2023
Afaster path to net-zero emissions and more security in the Indo-Pacific are expected to flow from a new pact with the United States, but the mining industry wants details.
Some $2 trillion has been unleashed for a low-carbon economy under United States laws, with Australia set to get preferential treatment as a trusted source of critical minerals and new energy sources such as hydrogen.
Canada is the only other country to get the special access that is in the works for Australian metals and minerals, future hydrogen and ammonia producers and defence technology companies.
"What's clear to me is that if Canada and the United States have been able to establish a good partnership, that bodes well for Australia," Minerals Council of Australia CEO Tania Constable told AAP.
But it's up to governments to work out the details quickly, she said.
With the right number of mines to meet demand and manufacturing occurring with a like-minded country, there will be a faster path to net-zero and more security in the region, she said.
"Hopefully the critical minerals strategy will set out a framework and pathway for those additional incentives that will really turbocharge this new industry," Ms Constable added.
Australia's updated list of critical minerals and strategy will be released soon and MCA wants nickel and copper added to unlock investment.
"The more we can get on the list the better, but nickel and copper should certainly be on the list," she said.
Used in everyday life in computers and mobile phones, they are also essential for electric cars and electronics for the electricity grid.
US Consul General Siriana Nair said on Wednesday the world's energy transition cannot happen without Australia's resources sector.
The freshly inked climate and energy partnership will increase investment in both countries, Ms Nair told the AFR Mining Summit in Perth.
"Australia is uniquely positioned to be a supplier of choice for us and global manufacturers," she said.
Demand for critical minerals will skyrocket in coming decades and for minerals such as lithium and graphite that are used in electric vehicle batteries, demand will increase by as much as 4000 per cent, she said.
An unprecedented $2 trillion has been allocated under various US laws to support investment in research and development, adopting clean energy and new vehicles, new infrastructure and supply chain security, she said.
Seeking to break China's stranglehold on the global supply of factory-ready minerals, the US laws define a critical mineral as a mineral essential to economic or national security and which has a supply chain vulnerable to disruption.
She said Australia, and particularly Western Australia, has the technological know-how and high environmental and labour standards needed to bring these minerals to market in a sustainable way.
"And America stands with you," Ms Nair said.
A new Australia-US task force will give local industry a seat at the table to secure vital supply chains for minerals and defence industries.
A global survey released by KPMG to coincide with the summit shows mining leaders are confident they can profit from the clean energy boom and hit net-zero goalposts.
Improving energy efficiency was the highest priority for tackling the environmental challenges from mining and metals processing.
Mining ready to ride boom with $2 trillion up for grabs
Story by Marion Rae • 5:27 pm - 26-5-2023
Afaster path to net-zero emissions and more security in the Indo-Pacific are expected to flow from a new pact with the United States, but the mining industry wants details.
Some $2 trillion has been unleashed for a low-carbon economy under United States laws, with Australia set to get preferential treatment as a trusted source of critical minerals and new energy sources such as hydrogen.
Canada is the only other country to get the special access that is in the works for Australian metals and minerals, future hydrogen and ammonia producers and defence technology companies.
"What's clear to me is that if Canada and the United States have been able to establish a good partnership, that bodes well for Australia," Minerals Council of Australia CEO Tania Constable told AAP.
But it's up to governments to work out the details quickly, she said.
With the right number of mines to meet demand and manufacturing occurring with a like-minded country, there will be a faster path to net-zero and more security in the region, she said.
"Hopefully the critical minerals strategy will set out a framework and pathway for those additional incentives that will really turbocharge this new industry," Ms Constable added.
Australia's updated list of critical minerals and strategy will be released soon and MCA wants nickel and copper added to unlock investment.
"The more we can get on the list the better, but nickel and copper should certainly be on the list," she said.
Used in everyday life in computers and mobile phones, they are also essential for electric cars and electronics for the electricity grid.
US Consul General Siriana Nair said on Wednesday the world's energy transition cannot happen without Australia's resources sector.
The freshly inked climate and energy partnership will increase investment in both countries, Ms Nair told the AFR Mining Summit in Perth.
"Australia is uniquely positioned to be a supplier of choice for us and global manufacturers," she said.
Demand for critical minerals will skyrocket in coming decades and for minerals such as lithium and graphite that are used in electric vehicle batteries, demand will increase by as much as 4000 per cent, she said.
An unprecedented $2 trillion has been allocated under various US laws to support investment in research and development, adopting clean energy and new vehicles, new infrastructure and supply chain security, she said.
Seeking to break China's stranglehold on the global supply of factory-ready minerals, the US laws define a critical mineral as a mineral essential to economic or national security and which has a supply chain vulnerable to disruption.
She said Australia, and particularly Western Australia, has the technological know-how and high environmental and labour standards needed to bring these minerals to market in a sustainable way.
"And America stands with you," Ms Nair said.
A new Australia-US task force will give local industry a seat at the table to secure vital supply chains for minerals and defence industries.
A global survey released by KPMG to coincide with the summit shows mining leaders are confident they can profit from the clean energy boom and hit net-zero goalposts.
Improving energy efficiency was the highest priority for tackling the environmental challenges from mining and metals processing.
11 months ago
The Independent
What is the ‘African plume’ that could bring 35C heatwave conditions to UK?
Story by Stuti Mishra • 4:36 pm - 22-5-2023
Is it connected to the climate crisis?
While weather patterns can be influenced by various factors, the increased occurrence of African plumes aligns with our warming climate, experts said.
According to Met Office meteorologist Honor Criswick, there is “a greater than normal chance” of heatwaves in the UK this summer, which is “consistent with our warming climate”.
However, she said that, “as always with a longer-range forecast, there is always some uncertainty”.
While one weather phenomenon alone does not guarantee a heatwave, with a warmed up world of 1.2C, such occurrences have become more frequent in recent years.
This year is particularly worrying, as the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) said the El Niño weather phenomenon, associated with the warming of the oceans, is set to take over later this year.
“The development of an El Niño will most likely lead to a new spike in global heating and increase the chance of breaking temperature records,” WMO Secretary-General Petri Taalas said at the time of the warning.
The world is also expected to breach the 1.5C warming threshold, the agreed limit of the Paris Agreement, as early as within the next five years, warned the WMO.
The heatwaves experienced in 2022 already signalled the impact of the climate crisis, with England recording its joint-hottest summer on record.
The Met Office's chief scientist, Professor Stephen Belcher, described the 40C temperatures experienced last year as “virtually impossible without climate change”.
From news to politics, travel to sport, culture to climate – The Independent has a host of free newsletters to suit your interests. To find the stories you want to read, and more, in your inbox, click here.
What is the ‘African plume’ that could bring 35C heatwave conditions to UK?
Story by Stuti Mishra • 4:36 pm - 22-5-2023
Is it connected to the climate crisis?
While weather patterns can be influenced by various factors, the increased occurrence of African plumes aligns with our warming climate, experts said.
According to Met Office meteorologist Honor Criswick, there is “a greater than normal chance” of heatwaves in the UK this summer, which is “consistent with our warming climate”.
However, she said that, “as always with a longer-range forecast, there is always some uncertainty”.
While one weather phenomenon alone does not guarantee a heatwave, with a warmed up world of 1.2C, such occurrences have become more frequent in recent years.
This year is particularly worrying, as the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) said the El Niño weather phenomenon, associated with the warming of the oceans, is set to take over later this year.
“The development of an El Niño will most likely lead to a new spike in global heating and increase the chance of breaking temperature records,” WMO Secretary-General Petri Taalas said at the time of the warning.
The world is also expected to breach the 1.5C warming threshold, the agreed limit of the Paris Agreement, as early as within the next five years, warned the WMO.
The heatwaves experienced in 2022 already signalled the impact of the climate crisis, with England recording its joint-hottest summer on record.
The Met Office's chief scientist, Professor Stephen Belcher, described the 40C temperatures experienced last year as “virtually impossible without climate change”.
From news to politics, travel to sport, culture to climate – The Independent has a host of free newsletters to suit your interests. To find the stories you want to read, and more, in your inbox, click here.
11 months ago
The Independent
What is the ‘African plume’ that could bring 35C heatwave conditions to UK?
Story by Stuti Mishra • 4:36 pm - 22-5-2023
The UK is bracing itself for a scorching summer as meteorologists have predicted the arrival of the much-discussed “African plumes” later this month which can make temperatures soar to 35C.
In a widely reported forecast, Exacta Weather said African plumes are likely to sweep across Europe between June and September.
The weather phenomenon, characterised by a mass of hot air originating from the Sahara desert, have the potential to bring multiple heatwaves.
While such a scenario may be unprecedented, experts agree it is not impossible, given recent warming climate trends.
On Sunday, the UK witnessed temperatures above 20C in several areas across England and Wales, making it the hottest day recorded this year so far.
The coming days are set to get warmer with “above average” temperatures expected by the end of May.
As the UK eagerly awaits the summer heat, there is fear that the conditions can get worse again this year, with heatwave-like conditions stemming from the arrival of the anticipated African plumes.
Here’s what exactly an African plume is and how hot it can get.
What is an African plume?
An African plume is a weather phenomenon in which hot air masses from the Sahara desert in Africa are transported northward towards Europe, including the UK.
This plume of hot air carries with it high temperatures and dry conditions, leading to exceptionally warm weather.
During an African plume event, southerly or southeasterly winds carry the hot and dry air across the Mediterranean Sea towards the British Isles. As the air mass moves over the warm waters of the Mediterranean, it absorbs heat and moisture, further intensifying its warmth and humidity.
This process creates a distinct narrow band of hot air, resembling a feather-like structure on weather maps.
How hot will it get when African plumes arrive?
When an African plume reaches the UK, it brings a period of unusually hot temperatures, often exceeding 30C.
These high temperatures can persist for several days or even weeks, resulting in heatwave conditions.
However, the intensity and duration of the heatwave can vary from year to year, depending on atmospheric conditions.
James Madden of Exacta Weather told The Mirror that there are “some strong indicators” for a “warm to hot September this year” due to the African plumes.
“The peak of these heat surges in June and July could see maximum temperatures ranging in the low to mid-thirties, and the late summer/August heatwave could sign off summer 2023 with temperatures ranging a notch or two higher than this,” he was quoted as saying.
What is the ‘African plume’ that could bring 35C heatwave conditions to UK?
Story by Stuti Mishra • 4:36 pm - 22-5-2023
The UK is bracing itself for a scorching summer as meteorologists have predicted the arrival of the much-discussed “African plumes” later this month which can make temperatures soar to 35C.
In a widely reported forecast, Exacta Weather said African plumes are likely to sweep across Europe between June and September.
The weather phenomenon, characterised by a mass of hot air originating from the Sahara desert, have the potential to bring multiple heatwaves.
While such a scenario may be unprecedented, experts agree it is not impossible, given recent warming climate trends.
On Sunday, the UK witnessed temperatures above 20C in several areas across England and Wales, making it the hottest day recorded this year so far.
The coming days are set to get warmer with “above average” temperatures expected by the end of May.
As the UK eagerly awaits the summer heat, there is fear that the conditions can get worse again this year, with heatwave-like conditions stemming from the arrival of the anticipated African plumes.
Here’s what exactly an African plume is and how hot it can get.
What is an African plume?
An African plume is a weather phenomenon in which hot air masses from the Sahara desert in Africa are transported northward towards Europe, including the UK.
This plume of hot air carries with it high temperatures and dry conditions, leading to exceptionally warm weather.
During an African plume event, southerly or southeasterly winds carry the hot and dry air across the Mediterranean Sea towards the British Isles. As the air mass moves over the warm waters of the Mediterranean, it absorbs heat and moisture, further intensifying its warmth and humidity.
This process creates a distinct narrow band of hot air, resembling a feather-like structure on weather maps.
How hot will it get when African plumes arrive?
When an African plume reaches the UK, it brings a period of unusually hot temperatures, often exceeding 30C.
These high temperatures can persist for several days or even weeks, resulting in heatwave conditions.
However, the intensity and duration of the heatwave can vary from year to year, depending on atmospheric conditions.
James Madden of Exacta Weather told The Mirror that there are “some strong indicators” for a “warm to hot September this year” due to the African plumes.
“The peak of these heat surges in June and July could see maximum temperatures ranging in the low to mid-thirties, and the late summer/August heatwave could sign off summer 2023 with temperatures ranging a notch or two higher than this,” he was quoted as saying.
11 months ago
Sky News Australia
US response to Putin using nuclear weapons would put us at the 'doorstep of World War III'
Story by Sky News Australia • 11:42 am - 22-5-2023
Curtin University political analyst Professor Joe Siracusa says America’s response to if Russian President Vladimir Putin used tactical nuclear weapons would “put us right at the doorstep of World War III”.
Professor Siracusa’s remarks come after the United States decided to allow the allies to supply F-16 fighter jets to Kyiv.
“I believe that President Putin is very seriously considering his options – one of them might be a tactical nuclear weapon,” he told Sky News Australia.
“I heard in Europe last week that what would be the American response if President Putin actually used tactical nuclear weapons.
“The word I heard was that the Pentagon has informed the Kremlin through backchannels that the United States would respond with a massive conventional attack on Crimea and the Russian Black Fleet, which would, of course, put us right at the doorstep of World War III.”
US response to Putin using nuclear weapons would put us at the 'doorstep of World War III'
© Provided by Sky News Australia
US response to Putin using nuclear weapons would put us at the 'doorstep of World War III'
Story by Sky News Australia • 11:42 am - 22-5-2023
Curtin University political analyst Professor Joe Siracusa says America’s response to if Russian President Vladimir Putin used tactical nuclear weapons would “put us right at the doorstep of World War III”.
Professor Siracusa’s remarks come after the United States decided to allow the allies to supply F-16 fighter jets to Kyiv.
“I believe that President Putin is very seriously considering his options – one of them might be a tactical nuclear weapon,” he told Sky News Australia.
“I heard in Europe last week that what would be the American response if President Putin actually used tactical nuclear weapons.
“The word I heard was that the Pentagon has informed the Kremlin through backchannels that the United States would respond with a massive conventional attack on Crimea and the Russian Black Fleet, which would, of course, put us right at the doorstep of World War III.”
US response to Putin using nuclear weapons would put us at the 'doorstep of World War III'
© Provided by Sky News Australia
11 months ago
The Guardian
Mark Zuckerberg’s metaverse vision is over. Can Apple save it?
Story by Alex Hern • 22-5-2023
It is not just outsiders Meta needs to convince. Even its own shareholders are starting to revolt. The company lost $13.7bn on its “reality labs” unit, which handles research into virtual reality and augmented reality tech, in the last year alone. In a December 2022 blogpost from the unit’s head, Andrew Bosworth, he predicted that a full fifth of the company’s expenditure this year would land with the unit.
But despite the years of investment, there is still only one real area where the underlying technology is actually paying off: video games.
Meta’s Quest 2 headset, a £400 standalone device, is the market leader, capable of handling some of the most popular VR games on the market, including the Meta-owned rhythm game Beat Saber, and VR exercise title Supernatural. Connect it to a powerful gaming PC and it can play even more, including the critically acclaimed Half-Life Alyx, a sequel to 2004’s Half-Life 2. (For non-gamers, imagine if Doctor Who had returned from its 1996 to 2005 hiatus in the form of a Sarah Jane Smith-focused spin-off series that was exclusive to 3D TVs. And then won a best drama Bafta.)
“Meta has done a huge amount of backpedalling about what it thinks is and is not the metaverse,” said Whatley. “I’ve seen Meta presentations that say augmented reality filters on Instagram count as the metaverse. But then I’ve also seen them say that we are all building the metaverse together. It’s quite telling that 100% of the top 38 bestselling experiences for the Quest 2 are all video games. The 39th is a ‘walk the plank’ experience.”
And in that world, Meta is hardly unchallenged. Half-Life Alyx was made for a rival PC platform, the £919 Valve Index, which serves the needs of diehard VR gamers with its “room scale” approach, while Sony’s £529 PlayStation VR2 offers a similar high-fidelity approach for console gamers with a PlayStation 5 in the living room.
And then there is the elephant in the room – and the reason why it may still be too early to fully write off Meta’s metaverse ambitions altogether. On 5 June, Apple is set to lift the lid on the worst kept secret in tech: its own virtual reality headset.
Piecing together leaks from the supply chain, reports from California and the groundwork the company has laid with developers, it is clear that the iPhone maker is planning to take a radically different approach from its rival, with a price tag in the thousands of dollars and a long-term goal to create a device that people do not feel the need to take off when they want to speak to people in the same room as them.
Like so much in the metaverse space, it is a vision that makes sense when you are planning for a decade’s time: with a refined version of these headsets that bundles the same technology in a pair of glasses, it could even be an appealing prospect to speak to the avatar of a work colleague floating in virtual space if the alternative is staring at yet another Zoom window.
But getting from here to there is going to be a hard and thankless slog – and even Zuckerberg cannot burn $10bn a year for ever.
Nick Clegg, Meta’s president of global affairs, says the metaverse is still in its infancy. Photograph: Kenzo Tribouillard/AFP/Getty Images
© Provided by The Guardian
Mark Zuckerberg’s metaverse vision is over. Can Apple save it?
Story by Alex Hern • 22-5-2023
It is not just outsiders Meta needs to convince. Even its own shareholders are starting to revolt. The company lost $13.7bn on its “reality labs” unit, which handles research into virtual reality and augmented reality tech, in the last year alone. In a December 2022 blogpost from the unit’s head, Andrew Bosworth, he predicted that a full fifth of the company’s expenditure this year would land with the unit.
But despite the years of investment, there is still only one real area where the underlying technology is actually paying off: video games.
Meta’s Quest 2 headset, a £400 standalone device, is the market leader, capable of handling some of the most popular VR games on the market, including the Meta-owned rhythm game Beat Saber, and VR exercise title Supernatural. Connect it to a powerful gaming PC and it can play even more, including the critically acclaimed Half-Life Alyx, a sequel to 2004’s Half-Life 2. (For non-gamers, imagine if Doctor Who had returned from its 1996 to 2005 hiatus in the form of a Sarah Jane Smith-focused spin-off series that was exclusive to 3D TVs. And then won a best drama Bafta.)
“Meta has done a huge amount of backpedalling about what it thinks is and is not the metaverse,” said Whatley. “I’ve seen Meta presentations that say augmented reality filters on Instagram count as the metaverse. But then I’ve also seen them say that we are all building the metaverse together. It’s quite telling that 100% of the top 38 bestselling experiences for the Quest 2 are all video games. The 39th is a ‘walk the plank’ experience.”
And in that world, Meta is hardly unchallenged. Half-Life Alyx was made for a rival PC platform, the £919 Valve Index, which serves the needs of diehard VR gamers with its “room scale” approach, while Sony’s £529 PlayStation VR2 offers a similar high-fidelity approach for console gamers with a PlayStation 5 in the living room.
And then there is the elephant in the room – and the reason why it may still be too early to fully write off Meta’s metaverse ambitions altogether. On 5 June, Apple is set to lift the lid on the worst kept secret in tech: its own virtual reality headset.
Piecing together leaks from the supply chain, reports from California and the groundwork the company has laid with developers, it is clear that the iPhone maker is planning to take a radically different approach from its rival, with a price tag in the thousands of dollars and a long-term goal to create a device that people do not feel the need to take off when they want to speak to people in the same room as them.
Like so much in the metaverse space, it is a vision that makes sense when you are planning for a decade’s time: with a refined version of these headsets that bundles the same technology in a pair of glasses, it could even be an appealing prospect to speak to the avatar of a work colleague floating in virtual space if the alternative is staring at yet another Zoom window.
But getting from here to there is going to be a hard and thankless slog – and even Zuckerberg cannot burn $10bn a year for ever.
Nick Clegg, Meta’s president of global affairs, says the metaverse is still in its infancy. Photograph: Kenzo Tribouillard/AFP/Getty Images
© Provided by The Guardian
11 months ago
The Guardian
Mark Zuckerberg’s metaverse vision is over. Can Apple save it?
Story by Alex Hern • 22-5-2023
Such an expansive definition – simply setting up a Memoji on your iPhone or logging into Fortnite could count as “using the metaverse” – helps Meta dodge criticism that the dream the company promised looks no closer to fruition now than it did 18 months ago.
It also helps to make the prospect of actually building the damn thing look more appealing.
In a piece of research commissioned by Meta this month, the Deloitte consultancy said that the metaverse could contribute “between £40bn and £75bn in additional GDP [gross domestic product]” to the UK alone by 2035.
The 25-page report – one of nine commissioned for every large market Meta operates in, from “the metaverse and its potential for the United States” to “Enabling the metaverse in sub-Saharan Africa” – argues optimistically that “there is a large opportunity for the UK as a metaverse leader” and concludes that the benefits could reach as high as 2.4% of GDP. To reach those figures, Deloitte applied much the same vague definition as Clegg, but stretched the net even further, pulling in the entirety of the cryptocurrency space as a side benefit.
“The metaverse will also likely necessitate the use of new verification technologies based on ledgers of permanent entries – blockchains, broadly referred to as ‘Web3’ – to support its decentralised nature,” the report argued. Some challengers for Meta’s claim to the metaverse are more like blockchains with rudimentary 3D engines attached: virtual worlds such as Decentraland and the Sandbox trade “land” and “objects” for real-world money but attract few active users otherwise.
“Economic value will be created by new markets, business models, skills development and better ways of working in the UK,” said Deloitte. What new markets? Well, Liverpool football club launched an NFT (non-fungible token) collection in March 2022 “and generated revenue of £1.13m, even though 95% of the digital collection did not sell”. A few months later, Liverpool spent £85m on Benfica striker Darwin Núñez, so it is fair to guess that the NFT collection did not have a huge impact on the club’s bottom line for the year.
“You see a lot of poorly reported or badly written articles referring to the metaverse as ‘3D worlds such as the Sandbox, Decentraland and Roblox’. The frustrating thing is, two of those are terrible website experiences that serve hundreds of people and one of them is a video game platform that serves 66 million active users per day,” said James Whatley, the chief strategy officer at creative agency Diva.
He added: “Beware of the consultant that promises you metaverse numbers but then delivers a Web3 website experience. If you’re a serious player in this space, you want to speak to hundreds of millions of people – and those people play video games. Not crap 3D websites.”
Education could also be booted, Deloitte insisted. “The metaverse could help transform classroom settings while allowing students to avoid the costs of moving to and living in the UK. This could be a boon for the approximately 600,000 international students currently attending UK universities.” So could healthcare, industry, live entertainment – and even just plain old office jobs.
Meta’s chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, denied that his company had shifted its focus away from the metaverse towards AI. Photograph: David Ramos/Getty Images
© Provide
Mark Zuckerberg’s metaverse vision is over. Can Apple save it?
Story by Alex Hern • 22-5-2023
Such an expansive definition – simply setting up a Memoji on your iPhone or logging into Fortnite could count as “using the metaverse” – helps Meta dodge criticism that the dream the company promised looks no closer to fruition now than it did 18 months ago.
It also helps to make the prospect of actually building the damn thing look more appealing.
In a piece of research commissioned by Meta this month, the Deloitte consultancy said that the metaverse could contribute “between £40bn and £75bn in additional GDP [gross domestic product]” to the UK alone by 2035.
The 25-page report – one of nine commissioned for every large market Meta operates in, from “the metaverse and its potential for the United States” to “Enabling the metaverse in sub-Saharan Africa” – argues optimistically that “there is a large opportunity for the UK as a metaverse leader” and concludes that the benefits could reach as high as 2.4% of GDP. To reach those figures, Deloitte applied much the same vague definition as Clegg, but stretched the net even further, pulling in the entirety of the cryptocurrency space as a side benefit.
“The metaverse will also likely necessitate the use of new verification technologies based on ledgers of permanent entries – blockchains, broadly referred to as ‘Web3’ – to support its decentralised nature,” the report argued. Some challengers for Meta’s claim to the metaverse are more like blockchains with rudimentary 3D engines attached: virtual worlds such as Decentraland and the Sandbox trade “land” and “objects” for real-world money but attract few active users otherwise.
“Economic value will be created by new markets, business models, skills development and better ways of working in the UK,” said Deloitte. What new markets? Well, Liverpool football club launched an NFT (non-fungible token) collection in March 2022 “and generated revenue of £1.13m, even though 95% of the digital collection did not sell”. A few months later, Liverpool spent £85m on Benfica striker Darwin Núñez, so it is fair to guess that the NFT collection did not have a huge impact on the club’s bottom line for the year.
“You see a lot of poorly reported or badly written articles referring to the metaverse as ‘3D worlds such as the Sandbox, Decentraland and Roblox’. The frustrating thing is, two of those are terrible website experiences that serve hundreds of people and one of them is a video game platform that serves 66 million active users per day,” said James Whatley, the chief strategy officer at creative agency Diva.
He added: “Beware of the consultant that promises you metaverse numbers but then delivers a Web3 website experience. If you’re a serious player in this space, you want to speak to hundreds of millions of people – and those people play video games. Not crap 3D websites.”
Education could also be booted, Deloitte insisted. “The metaverse could help transform classroom settings while allowing students to avoid the costs of moving to and living in the UK. This could be a boon for the approximately 600,000 international students currently attending UK universities.” So could healthcare, industry, live entertainment – and even just plain old office jobs.
Meta’s chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, denied that his company had shifted its focus away from the metaverse towards AI. Photograph: David Ramos/Getty Images
© Provide
11 months ago
The Guardian
Mark Zuckerberg’s metaverse vision is over. Can Apple save it?
Story by Alex Hern • 22-5-2023
In Meta’s quarterly earnings call in April, chief executive Mark Zuckerberg was on the defensive. The metaverse, the vision of a globe-spanning virtual reality that he had literally bet his multibillion-dollar empire on creating, had been usurped as the new hot thing by the growing hype around artificial intelligence (AI).
Critics had even noticed Meta itself changing its tune, highlighting the difference between a November statement from Zuckerberg, in which he described the project as a “high-priority growth area” and a March note that instead focused on how “advancing AI” was the company’s “single largest investment”.
Not so, said the world’s richest millennial. “A narrative has developed that we’re somehow moving away from focusing on the metaverse vision, so I just want to say upfront that that’s not accurate.
“We’ve been focusing on AI and the metaverse for years now, and we will continue to focus on both … Building the metaverse is a long-term project, but the rationale for it remains the same and we remain committed to it.”
But more than 18 months after Facebook changed its name to Meta – demonstrating Zuckerberg’s firm belief that “the metaverse will be the successor of the mobile internet” – the future he promised seems no closer to existence than it did backthen.
Reams of concept art, tech demos and prototype devices have given way to little meaningful progress. The company has even struggled to actually define what it is hoping to build: in a lengthy blogpost published last May, Nick Clegg, the former UK deputy prime minister who is now Meta’s president of global affairs, described the ambition only in vague terms, despite elaborating across 8,000 words how it would nonetheless change the world.
“The metaverse is a logical evolution. It’s the next generation of the internet – a more immersive, 3D experience. Its defining quality will be a feeling of presence, like you are right there with another person or in another place,” he said. “Early versions of it already exist in the virtual worlds of games like Roblox, Minecraft and Fortnite. It incorporates technologies like virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) that, while still young, have been in use for some time.”
But, Clegg insisted, the concept was not limited to niche gadgets that may or may not catch on: it already exists today. “The metaverse isn’t just about the detached worlds of VR, where we don headsets that take us out of our environment in the physical world and transport us somewhere new. VR is one end of a spectrum. It stretches from using avatars or accessing metaverse spaces on your phone, through AR glasses that project computer-generated images onto the world around us, to mixed reality experiences that blend both physical and virtual environments.”
Photograph: Aleem Zahid Khan/Alamy
© Provided by The Guardian
Mark Zuckerberg’s metaverse vision is over. Can Apple save it?
Story by Alex Hern • 22-5-2023
In Meta’s quarterly earnings call in April, chief executive Mark Zuckerberg was on the defensive. The metaverse, the vision of a globe-spanning virtual reality that he had literally bet his multibillion-dollar empire on creating, had been usurped as the new hot thing by the growing hype around artificial intelligence (AI).
Critics had even noticed Meta itself changing its tune, highlighting the difference between a November statement from Zuckerberg, in which he described the project as a “high-priority growth area” and a March note that instead focused on how “advancing AI” was the company’s “single largest investment”.
Not so, said the world’s richest millennial. “A narrative has developed that we’re somehow moving away from focusing on the metaverse vision, so I just want to say upfront that that’s not accurate.
“We’ve been focusing on AI and the metaverse for years now, and we will continue to focus on both … Building the metaverse is a long-term project, but the rationale for it remains the same and we remain committed to it.”
But more than 18 months after Facebook changed its name to Meta – demonstrating Zuckerberg’s firm belief that “the metaverse will be the successor of the mobile internet” – the future he promised seems no closer to existence than it did backthen.
Reams of concept art, tech demos and prototype devices have given way to little meaningful progress. The company has even struggled to actually define what it is hoping to build: in a lengthy blogpost published last May, Nick Clegg, the former UK deputy prime minister who is now Meta’s president of global affairs, described the ambition only in vague terms, despite elaborating across 8,000 words how it would nonetheless change the world.
“The metaverse is a logical evolution. It’s the next generation of the internet – a more immersive, 3D experience. Its defining quality will be a feeling of presence, like you are right there with another person or in another place,” he said. “Early versions of it already exist in the virtual worlds of games like Roblox, Minecraft and Fortnite. It incorporates technologies like virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) that, while still young, have been in use for some time.”
But, Clegg insisted, the concept was not limited to niche gadgets that may or may not catch on: it already exists today. “The metaverse isn’t just about the detached worlds of VR, where we don headsets that take us out of our environment in the physical world and transport us somewhere new. VR is one end of a spectrum. It stretches from using avatars or accessing metaverse spaces on your phone, through AR glasses that project computer-generated images onto the world around us, to mixed reality experiences that blend both physical and virtual environments.”
Photograph: Aleem Zahid Khan/Alamy
© Provided by The Guardian
11 months ago
Reuters
Chinese embassy in Britain asks London to stop slandering China to avoid damage
Story by Reuters • 22-5-2023
(Reuters) - The Chinese embassy in Britain in a statement on Sunday asked London to stop slandering and smearing China to avoid further damage to China-UK relations.
This comes after British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said China represents the world's greatest challenge to security and prosperity but that other leading economies should not decouple from it after a summit of the Group of Seven (G7) nations.
"The relevant remarks by the British side are simply parroting words from others and constitute malicious slanders in disregard of the facts. China firmly opposes and strongly condemns this," the embassy statement said.
(Reporting by Urvi Dugar in Bengaluru; Editing by Tom Hogue)
FILE PHOTO: A worker adjusts British and China national flags on display for a signing ceremony at the seventh UK-China Economic and Financial Dialogue "Roundtable on Public-Private Partnerships" in Beijing
© Thomson Reuters
Chinese embassy in Britain asks London to stop slandering China to avoid damage
Story by Reuters • 22-5-2023
(Reuters) - The Chinese embassy in Britain in a statement on Sunday asked London to stop slandering and smearing China to avoid further damage to China-UK relations.
This comes after British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said China represents the world's greatest challenge to security and prosperity but that other leading economies should not decouple from it after a summit of the Group of Seven (G7) nations.
"The relevant remarks by the British side are simply parroting words from others and constitute malicious slanders in disregard of the facts. China firmly opposes and strongly condemns this," the embassy statement said.
(Reporting by Urvi Dugar in Bengaluru; Editing by Tom Hogue)
FILE PHOTO: A worker adjusts British and China national flags on display for a signing ceremony at the seventh UK-China Economic and Financial Dialogue "Roundtable on Public-Private Partnerships" in Beijing
© Thomson Reuters
11 months ago
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11 months ago
ABC Business
Australia commits $160m to build more Bushmasters after donating 90 to Ukraine in war against Russia
17-5-2023
Bushmasters to Ukraine
Thales Australia is well-known globally for its Bushmaster, and now Hawkei, protected military vehicles as Ukraine uses the former in its war against Russia.
Australia has provided Ukraine with 90 Bushmasters to help in its efforts and now it wants the light protected mobility vehicle, the Hawkei.
Mr Conroy would not be drawn on whether Australia would send more Hawkei vehicles to Ukraine as publicly requested by its ambassador to Australia Vasyl Myroshnychenko in April.
"We're focused on delivering what we've already committed to the government and people of Ukraine, Mr Conroy said.
"We're proud to be one of the biggest non-NATO contributors of military aid to Ukraine in their valiant efforts to stop the unprovoked aggression from Vladimir Putin.
"We're always talking to our allies and partners about how we can support Ukraine best."
This month, a new Defence Strategy outlined a new direction for Australia's military, which involved moving away from land capability and focusing on long-range missiles, leaving the future of the Bushmaster, manufacturing jobs in Bendigo, and Thales Australia's future in the regional city in doubt.
In August last year, the Australian Army unveiled an electric prototype of the Bushmaster it said could be a part of the future of Army capability in Australia or on the battleground.
The French defence manufacturer Thales has not had a contract for the Bushmaster since New Zealand placed an order in 2020 for 43 Bushmaster vehicles.
The contract was worth $75 million and required Thales Australia to deliver five variants of the armoured vehicle by 2022.
In August last year, 29 jobs were axed from the North Bendigo facility after the run of 1,100 Hawkei vehicles ordered by Australia was completed.
Earlier this month, Thales Australia pleaded guilty in the Magistrates' Court of Victoria over the death of a painter at its North Bendigo facility in 2020 and will be sentenced next month. Under occupational health and safety laws, it faces a maximum fine of $1.5 million.
Last month, Ukraine called on Australia to send its Hawkei protected mobility vehicles to the battlefield.
A Bushmaster bound for Ukraine waits to be loaded onto a C-17A Globemaster at RAAF Base Amberley. (Supplied: Department of Defence, LACW Emma Schwenke)
© Provided by ABC Business
Australia commits $160m to build more Bushmasters after donating 90 to Ukraine in war against Russia
17-5-2023
Bushmasters to Ukraine
Thales Australia is well-known globally for its Bushmaster, and now Hawkei, protected military vehicles as Ukraine uses the former in its war against Russia.
Australia has provided Ukraine with 90 Bushmasters to help in its efforts and now it wants the light protected mobility vehicle, the Hawkei.
Mr Conroy would not be drawn on whether Australia would send more Hawkei vehicles to Ukraine as publicly requested by its ambassador to Australia Vasyl Myroshnychenko in April.
"We're focused on delivering what we've already committed to the government and people of Ukraine, Mr Conroy said.
"We're proud to be one of the biggest non-NATO contributors of military aid to Ukraine in their valiant efforts to stop the unprovoked aggression from Vladimir Putin.
"We're always talking to our allies and partners about how we can support Ukraine best."
This month, a new Defence Strategy outlined a new direction for Australia's military, which involved moving away from land capability and focusing on long-range missiles, leaving the future of the Bushmaster, manufacturing jobs in Bendigo, and Thales Australia's future in the regional city in doubt.
In August last year, the Australian Army unveiled an electric prototype of the Bushmaster it said could be a part of the future of Army capability in Australia or on the battleground.
The French defence manufacturer Thales has not had a contract for the Bushmaster since New Zealand placed an order in 2020 for 43 Bushmaster vehicles.
The contract was worth $75 million and required Thales Australia to deliver five variants of the armoured vehicle by 2022.
In August last year, 29 jobs were axed from the North Bendigo facility after the run of 1,100 Hawkei vehicles ordered by Australia was completed.
Earlier this month, Thales Australia pleaded guilty in the Magistrates' Court of Victoria over the death of a painter at its North Bendigo facility in 2020 and will be sentenced next month. Under occupational health and safety laws, it faces a maximum fine of $1.5 million.
Last month, Ukraine called on Australia to send its Hawkei protected mobility vehicles to the battlefield.
A Bushmaster bound for Ukraine waits to be loaded onto a C-17A Globemaster at RAAF Base Amberley. (Supplied: Department of Defence, LACW Emma Schwenke)
© Provided by ABC Business
11 months ago
ABC Business
Australia commits $160m to build more Bushmasters after donating 90 to Ukraine in war against Russia
17-5-2023
The federal government has announced a $160 million dollar contract for Bendigo defence manufacturer Thales Australia to build another order of Bushmaster protected vehicles for the Australian Army.
The contract, for the manufacture of 78 new troop-carrying and command vehicles over the next 18 months, was signed at Thales Australia's Bendigo facility today.
"More than 1,200 Bushmasters have already been manufactured at our Bendigo facility," Thales Australia chief executive Jeff Connolly said.
"As well as proving to be a life-saving vehicle for the Australian Army, they have been exported to eight nations including the Netherlands, UK, Fiji, Jamaica, New Zealand, and Indonesia."
Bushmasters could be retro-fitted with missiles
This month's Defence Strategy Review recommended the Australian Army focus on long-range strike capability and the ability to move around with more agility at the edges of land and sea.
Minister for Defence Industry Pat Conroy said the Bushmasters could be used to strike naval targets as part of the Land 4110 project.
"This is a land-based maritime strike. So, this is to give the Australian Army the ability to strike maritime or naval targets," he said.
"I know for a fact, one of the tenders will be strike master option, which is a Bushmaster-produced here at Thales Bendigo equipped with naval strike missiles that we are equipping our destroyers and frigates with.
"That project is being brought forward and given extra resources given the importance of long-range strikes for the Australian Army.
"I have to be very careful because while we don't have a live tender, at some stage there will be a live tender and I'm sure Thales will be part of a bid, but the sort of capability produced at Thales Bendigo will be carefully examined."
A Bushmaster bound for Ukraine waits to be loaded onto a C-17A Globemaster at RAAF Base Amberley. (Supplied: Department of Defence, LACW Emma Schwenke)
© Provided by ABC Business
Australia commits $160m to build more Bushmasters after donating 90 to Ukraine in war against Russia
17-5-2023
The federal government has announced a $160 million dollar contract for Bendigo defence manufacturer Thales Australia to build another order of Bushmaster protected vehicles for the Australian Army.
The contract, for the manufacture of 78 new troop-carrying and command vehicles over the next 18 months, was signed at Thales Australia's Bendigo facility today.
"More than 1,200 Bushmasters have already been manufactured at our Bendigo facility," Thales Australia chief executive Jeff Connolly said.
"As well as proving to be a life-saving vehicle for the Australian Army, they have been exported to eight nations including the Netherlands, UK, Fiji, Jamaica, New Zealand, and Indonesia."
Bushmasters could be retro-fitted with missiles
This month's Defence Strategy Review recommended the Australian Army focus on long-range strike capability and the ability to move around with more agility at the edges of land and sea.
Minister for Defence Industry Pat Conroy said the Bushmasters could be used to strike naval targets as part of the Land 4110 project.
"This is a land-based maritime strike. So, this is to give the Australian Army the ability to strike maritime or naval targets," he said.
"I know for a fact, one of the tenders will be strike master option, which is a Bushmaster-produced here at Thales Bendigo equipped with naval strike missiles that we are equipping our destroyers and frigates with.
"That project is being brought forward and given extra resources given the importance of long-range strikes for the Australian Army.
"I have to be very careful because while we don't have a live tender, at some stage there will be a live tender and I'm sure Thales will be part of a bid, but the sort of capability produced at Thales Bendigo will be carefully examined."
A Bushmaster bound for Ukraine waits to be loaded onto a C-17A Globemaster at RAAF Base Amberley. (Supplied: Department of Defence, LACW Emma Schwenke)
© Provided by ABC Business
11 months ago
Australia prepares for space race with a hybrid rocket
Story by Jennifer Dudley-Nicholson • 17-5-2023
Houston, we have a new contender.
Australia is just months away from joining the satellite-launching space race after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Wednesday unveiled the country's first homegrown rocket designed to enter orbit.
The launch vehicle, created by Gold Coast firm Gilmour Space Technologies, will lift off from a north Queensland base later this year and be used to deliver payloads of up to 4000kg into low-Earth orbit.
Gilmour Space Technologies chief executive and founder Adam Gilmour said a successful flight could make Australia one of only a few nations able to build and launch rockets into orbit.
"What you're looking at is the first orbital vehicle that's ever been designed and built in Australia," he said.
"It's critical technology – only 11 nations on the planet have orbital vehicles. When we go to space, we will be the 12th."
The locally built rocket, dubbed Eris, will also be one of the first orbital vehicles to rely on hybrid technology that combines solid and liquid propellants and is thought to be cheaper and safer conventional propulsion.
Visiting its Helensvale factory, Mr Albanese unveiled the rocket and signed the inside of its shell, congratulating the team on its future "lift-off".
He said the rocket's creation showed Australian businesses were capable of manufacturing world-class innovations.
"Australia can compete with the rest of the world. What we need to do is to back our businesses that are doing it," he said.
"What the Gilmours have done here is take a risk with their investment that they made in a start-up that's now attracting capital and attracting support. It's an example of Australian innovation."
Mr Albanese said the government would seek to support further innovation in sectors such as space, defence and critical minerals as part of its forthcoming $15 billion National Reconstruction Fund.
Australia's space industry is estimated to employ 10,000 people and generates up to $4b revenue each year.
The Australian Space Agency, established in 2018, aims to triple its contribution to $12b and create 20,000 additional jobs in the industry by 2030.
Mr Gilmour said business and government backing would be vital to support the country's growing space innovations.
"Australia must have its own sovereign launch and satellite technologies if we are serious about growing our capabilities in defence, communications and advanced manufacturing," he said.
The Gold Coast company is expected to test its Eris rocket later this year from the Bowen Orbital Spaceport, which is in the final stages of construction.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese visits Gilmour Space Technologies on the Gold Coast.
© Darren England/AAP PHOTOS
Story by Jennifer Dudley-Nicholson • 17-5-2023
Houston, we have a new contender.
Australia is just months away from joining the satellite-launching space race after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Wednesday unveiled the country's first homegrown rocket designed to enter orbit.
The launch vehicle, created by Gold Coast firm Gilmour Space Technologies, will lift off from a north Queensland base later this year and be used to deliver payloads of up to 4000kg into low-Earth orbit.
Gilmour Space Technologies chief executive and founder Adam Gilmour said a successful flight could make Australia one of only a few nations able to build and launch rockets into orbit.
"What you're looking at is the first orbital vehicle that's ever been designed and built in Australia," he said.
"It's critical technology – only 11 nations on the planet have orbital vehicles. When we go to space, we will be the 12th."
The locally built rocket, dubbed Eris, will also be one of the first orbital vehicles to rely on hybrid technology that combines solid and liquid propellants and is thought to be cheaper and safer conventional propulsion.
Visiting its Helensvale factory, Mr Albanese unveiled the rocket and signed the inside of its shell, congratulating the team on its future "lift-off".
He said the rocket's creation showed Australian businesses were capable of manufacturing world-class innovations.
"Australia can compete with the rest of the world. What we need to do is to back our businesses that are doing it," he said.
"What the Gilmours have done here is take a risk with their investment that they made in a start-up that's now attracting capital and attracting support. It's an example of Australian innovation."
Mr Albanese said the government would seek to support further innovation in sectors such as space, defence and critical minerals as part of its forthcoming $15 billion National Reconstruction Fund.
Australia's space industry is estimated to employ 10,000 people and generates up to $4b revenue each year.
The Australian Space Agency, established in 2018, aims to triple its contribution to $12b and create 20,000 additional jobs in the industry by 2030.
Mr Gilmour said business and government backing would be vital to support the country's growing space innovations.
"Australia must have its own sovereign launch and satellite technologies if we are serious about growing our capabilities in defence, communications and advanced manufacturing," he said.
The Gold Coast company is expected to test its Eris rocket later this year from the Bowen Orbital Spaceport, which is in the final stages of construction.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese visits Gilmour Space Technologies on the Gold Coast.
© Darren England/AAP PHOTOS
11 months ago
AAP
Australia 'gullible' over US commitment: Bob Carr
Story by Dominic Giannini • 18-5-2023
Former foreign minister Bob Carr says Australia was gullible about the relationship with the United States after Joe Biden pulled out of a major trip down under.
The US president pulled out of the Quad leaders' meeting - which was due to be held in Sydney next week - to handle negotiations with Congress over the debt ceiling, which needs to be resolved by the end of the month to avoid a catastrophic default.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese subsequently cancelled the meeting, which also included the Japanese and Indian leaders, on Wednesday after receiving a call from Mr Biden.
Bob Carr said Australians shouldn't believe the Quad "is as significant a forum as some suggest".
"We Australians have been enormously gullible and optimistic about our American partner," the former foreign minister and NSW premier told Sky News.
"We've got to start to factor into our view of the future in this world the prospect that America could be more unpredictable and unreliable.
"The fact the president can cancel the attendance and the meeting can apparently not proceed is a warning about the limits of America's attention span and one that Australia ought to take seriously."
The foreign minister's office said it didn't agree with the comments.
"President Biden is a great friend of Australia. We appreciate that friendship and the role the US plays in the region and in the world," a spokesman for the minister said.
The Indian prime minister will still travel to Australia for a bilateral meeting. The four leaders are planning to meet on the sidelines of the G7 in Japan this weekend.
Mr Albanese said it was disappointing Mr Biden couldn't visit but he was still invited to in the future. The president was set to address parliament on Tuesday.
"The Quad is an important body and we want to make sure that it occurs at leadership level and we'll be having that discussion over the weekend," the prime minister said.
Opposition foreign affairs spokesman Simon Birmingham said the shake-up was disappointing but understandable.
"I hope the United States can give real priority to rescheduling that visit and ensuring that that engagement with the Pacific Island leaders happens as soon as possible," he said.
Australia 'gullible' over US commitment: Bob Carr
Story by Dominic Giannini • 18-5-2023
Former foreign minister Bob Carr says Australia was gullible about the relationship with the United States after Joe Biden pulled out of a major trip down under.
The US president pulled out of the Quad leaders' meeting - which was due to be held in Sydney next week - to handle negotiations with Congress over the debt ceiling, which needs to be resolved by the end of the month to avoid a catastrophic default.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese subsequently cancelled the meeting, which also included the Japanese and Indian leaders, on Wednesday after receiving a call from Mr Biden.
Bob Carr said Australians shouldn't believe the Quad "is as significant a forum as some suggest".
"We Australians have been enormously gullible and optimistic about our American partner," the former foreign minister and NSW premier told Sky News.
"We've got to start to factor into our view of the future in this world the prospect that America could be more unpredictable and unreliable.
"The fact the president can cancel the attendance and the meeting can apparently not proceed is a warning about the limits of America's attention span and one that Australia ought to take seriously."
The foreign minister's office said it didn't agree with the comments.
"President Biden is a great friend of Australia. We appreciate that friendship and the role the US plays in the region and in the world," a spokesman for the minister said.
The Indian prime minister will still travel to Australia for a bilateral meeting. The four leaders are planning to meet on the sidelines of the G7 in Japan this weekend.
Mr Albanese said it was disappointing Mr Biden couldn't visit but he was still invited to in the future. The president was set to address parliament on Tuesday.
"The Quad is an important body and we want to make sure that it occurs at leadership level and we'll be having that discussion over the weekend," the prime minister said.
Opposition foreign affairs spokesman Simon Birmingham said the shake-up was disappointing but understandable.
"I hope the United States can give real priority to rescheduling that visit and ensuring that that engagement with the Pacific Island leaders happens as soon as possible," he said.
11 months ago
AAP
Military told to fast-track, revolutionise technology
Story by Dominic Giannini • 17-5-2023
The defence minister says Australia, the United States and Britain must work together seamlessly on new technology and weapons to protect against aggression in the Pacific.
Richard Marles will talk about cutting red tape to efficiently share technology and information through the AUKUS pact between the three nations, in a keynote speech to the American Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday.
He says the defence force will need to prioritise innovation to fast-track new capabilities.
"Our partnership will guide the accelerated development of advanced defence capabilities," he will tell the chamber at an event in Adelaide.
"If we are to develop these advanced capabilities, we need to adopt an innovation mindset, one where we are not afraid to fail fast, learn, and adapt."
Australia is working with the US to streamline the process of military acquisitions, including technology, due to arms export embargoes imposed by Congress.
"What's really clear is that if we are to realise the ambition of AUKUS, the transfer of technology and information between Australia and the US needs to be seamless," Mr Marles will say.
"This is a big task, the barriers in both systems are vast and complex. There is no silver bullet."
A key plank of the AUKUS agreement is a fleet of nuclear-powered submarines.
Defence Minister Richard Marles will talk of sharing technology seamlessly between AUKUS partners.
© Lukas Coch/AAP PHOTOS
Military told to fast-track, revolutionise technology
Story by Dominic Giannini • 17-5-2023
The defence minister says Australia, the United States and Britain must work together seamlessly on new technology and weapons to protect against aggression in the Pacific.
Richard Marles will talk about cutting red tape to efficiently share technology and information through the AUKUS pact between the three nations, in a keynote speech to the American Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday.
He says the defence force will need to prioritise innovation to fast-track new capabilities.
"Our partnership will guide the accelerated development of advanced defence capabilities," he will tell the chamber at an event in Adelaide.
"If we are to develop these advanced capabilities, we need to adopt an innovation mindset, one where we are not afraid to fail fast, learn, and adapt."
Australia is working with the US to streamline the process of military acquisitions, including technology, due to arms export embargoes imposed by Congress.
"What's really clear is that if we are to realise the ambition of AUKUS, the transfer of technology and information between Australia and the US needs to be seamless," Mr Marles will say.
"This is a big task, the barriers in both systems are vast and complex. There is no silver bullet."
A key plank of the AUKUS agreement is a fleet of nuclear-powered submarines.
Defence Minister Richard Marles will talk of sharing technology seamlessly between AUKUS partners.
© Lukas Coch/AAP PHOTOS
11 months ago
Reuters
In first, Kyiv says it shoots down volley of Russian hypersonic missiles
Story by By Gleb Garanich and Sergiy Karazy • 9:14 pm - 16-5-2023
By Gleb Garanich and Sergiy Karazy
Moscow mounted its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February last year and now claims to have annexed around a sixth of its neighbour's territory. Ukraine turned back Russian troops from the outskirts of Kyiv early in the war and recaptured territory in two counteroffensives in the second half of 2022, but has kept its forces on the defensive since November.
Russia says its invasion was necessary to counter a threat to its security posed by Kyiv's close ties to the West. Ukraine and its allies call it an unprovoked and unlawful war of conquest, and Kyiv says it will not stop fighting until all Russian troops leave its land.
European leaders meanwhile were meeting in Iceland on Tuesday for a two-day Council of Europe summit meant to show their support for Ukraine.
According to a draft of the final declaration seen by Reuters, the leaders will approve a new Register of Damages, a mechanism to record and document evidence and claims of damage, loss or injury incurred as a result of the Russian invasion.
European leaders such as Germany's Olaf Scholz, Britain's Rishi Sunak and French President Emmanuel Macron are attending the summit, which Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy will address via videolink.
(Additional reporting by Aleksandar Vasovic, Dan Peleschuk, Maria Starkova, Lidia Kelly; Writing by Peter Graff and Angus MacSwan; editing by Frank Jack Daniel)
A missile strike in Kyiv
© Thomson Reuters
In first, Kyiv says it shoots down volley of Russian hypersonic missiles
Story by By Gleb Garanich and Sergiy Karazy • 9:14 pm - 16-5-2023
By Gleb Garanich and Sergiy Karazy
Moscow mounted its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February last year and now claims to have annexed around a sixth of its neighbour's territory. Ukraine turned back Russian troops from the outskirts of Kyiv early in the war and recaptured territory in two counteroffensives in the second half of 2022, but has kept its forces on the defensive since November.
Russia says its invasion was necessary to counter a threat to its security posed by Kyiv's close ties to the West. Ukraine and its allies call it an unprovoked and unlawful war of conquest, and Kyiv says it will not stop fighting until all Russian troops leave its land.
European leaders meanwhile were meeting in Iceland on Tuesday for a two-day Council of Europe summit meant to show their support for Ukraine.
According to a draft of the final declaration seen by Reuters, the leaders will approve a new Register of Damages, a mechanism to record and document evidence and claims of damage, loss or injury incurred as a result of the Russian invasion.
European leaders such as Germany's Olaf Scholz, Britain's Rishi Sunak and French President Emmanuel Macron are attending the summit, which Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy will address via videolink.
(Additional reporting by Aleksandar Vasovic, Dan Peleschuk, Maria Starkova, Lidia Kelly; Writing by Peter Graff and Angus MacSwan; editing by Frank Jack Daniel)
A missile strike in Kyiv
© Thomson Reuters
11 months ago
Reuters
In first, Kyiv says it shoots down volley of Russian hypersonic missiles
Story by By Gleb Garanich and Sergiy Karazy • 9:14 pm - 16-5-2023
By Gleb Garanich and Sergiy Karazy
"UNDER CONTROL"
The past week has seen Ukrainian forces make their biggest gains on the battlefield since last November, recapturing several square km of territory on the northern and southern outskirts of the battlefield city of Bakhmut. Moscow has acknowledged that some of its troops have retreated but denies that its battle lines are crumbling.
A missile strike in Kyiv
A missile strike in Kyiv
© Thomson Reuters
Kyiv says those advances are localised and do not yet represent the full force of its upcoming counteroffensive, which is expected to take advantage of hundreds of modern tanks and armoured vehicles sent by the West this year.
A Ukrainian counteroffensive would bring the next major phase of the war after a huge Russian winter offensive that failed to capture significant new territory despite the bloodiest ground combat in Europe since World War Two.
In first, Kyiv says it shoots down volley of Russian hypersonic missiles
Story by By Gleb Garanich and Sergiy Karazy • 9:14 pm - 16-5-2023
By Gleb Garanich and Sergiy Karazy
"UNDER CONTROL"
The past week has seen Ukrainian forces make their biggest gains on the battlefield since last November, recapturing several square km of territory on the northern and southern outskirts of the battlefield city of Bakhmut. Moscow has acknowledged that some of its troops have retreated but denies that its battle lines are crumbling.
A missile strike in Kyiv
A missile strike in Kyiv
© Thomson Reuters
Kyiv says those advances are localised and do not yet represent the full force of its upcoming counteroffensive, which is expected to take advantage of hundreds of modern tanks and armoured vehicles sent by the West this year.
A Ukrainian counteroffensive would bring the next major phase of the war after a huge Russian winter offensive that failed to capture significant new territory despite the bloodiest ground combat in Europe since World War Two.
11 months ago
Reuters
In first, Kyiv says it shoots down volley of Russian hypersonic missiles
Story by By Gleb Garanich and Sergiy Karazy • 9:14 pm - 16-5-2023
By Gleb Garanich and Sergiy Karazy
"It was exceptional in its density - the maximum number of attack missiles in the shortest period of time," Serhiy Popko, head of Kyiv's city military administration, said on Telegram.
Zvezda quoted the Russian ministry as saying the attacks had been aimed at Ukrainian fighting units and ammunition storage sites.
Zaluzhnyi said his forces had intercepted the six Kinzhals launched from aircraft, as well as nine Kalibr cruise missiles from ships in the Black Sea and three Iskanders fired from land.
Earlier this month, Ukraine claimed to have shot down a single Kinzhal missile over Kyiv for the first time using a newly deployed U.S. Patriot air defence system.
The Kinzhal missile, whose name means dagger, can carry conventional or nuclear warheads up to 2,000 km. Russia used the weapon in warfare for the first time in Ukraine last year and has only acknowledged firing the missiles on a few occasions.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has frequently touted the Kinzhal as proof of world-beating Russian military hardware, capable of taking on NATO.
With Ukrainian forces preparing to go on the offensive for the first time in six months, Russia is now launching long-range air strikes at the highest frequency of the war.
It has launched eight drone and missile volleys so far this month, compared to weekly during the winter and a lull in March and April. Kyiv says it has been shooting most down.
A missile strike in Kyiv
© Thomson Reuters
In first, Kyiv says it shoots down volley of Russian hypersonic missiles
Story by By Gleb Garanich and Sergiy Karazy • 9:14 pm - 16-5-2023
By Gleb Garanich and Sergiy Karazy
"It was exceptional in its density - the maximum number of attack missiles in the shortest period of time," Serhiy Popko, head of Kyiv's city military administration, said on Telegram.
Zvezda quoted the Russian ministry as saying the attacks had been aimed at Ukrainian fighting units and ammunition storage sites.
Zaluzhnyi said his forces had intercepted the six Kinzhals launched from aircraft, as well as nine Kalibr cruise missiles from ships in the Black Sea and three Iskanders fired from land.
Earlier this month, Ukraine claimed to have shot down a single Kinzhal missile over Kyiv for the first time using a newly deployed U.S. Patriot air defence system.
The Kinzhal missile, whose name means dagger, can carry conventional or nuclear warheads up to 2,000 km. Russia used the weapon in warfare for the first time in Ukraine last year and has only acknowledged firing the missiles on a few occasions.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has frequently touted the Kinzhal as proof of world-beating Russian military hardware, capable of taking on NATO.
With Ukrainian forces preparing to go on the offensive for the first time in six months, Russia is now launching long-range air strikes at the highest frequency of the war.
It has launched eight drone and missile volleys so far this month, compared to weekly during the winter and a lull in March and April. Kyiv says it has been shooting most down.
A missile strike in Kyiv
© Thomson Reuters
11 months ago
Reuters
In first, Kyiv says it shoots down volley of Russian hypersonic missiles
Story by By Gleb Garanich and Sergiy Karazy • 9:14 pm - 16-5-2023
By Gleb Garanich and Sergiy Karazy
"The enemy's mission is to sow panic and create chaos. However, in the northern operational zone (including Kyiv), everything is under complete control," General Serhiy Naev, Commander of the Joint Forces of the Armed Forces, said.
The six Kinzhals, ballistic missiles which travel at up to 10 times the speed of sound, were among a volley of 18 missiles Russia fired at Ukraine overnight, lighting up Kyiv with flashes and raining debris after they were blasted from the sky.
Russia's defence ministry said it had destroyed a U.S.-built Patriot surface-to-air missile defence system with a Kinzhal missile, the Zvezda military news outlet reported.
But the commander-in-chief of Ukraine's armed forces, Valeriy Zaluzhnyi said all had been successfully intercepted.
City authorities in the Ukrainian capital said three people were wounded by falling debris.
In first, Kyiv says it shoots down volley of Russian hypersonic missiles
Story by By Gleb Garanich and Sergiy Karazy • 9:14 pm - 16-5-2023
By Gleb Garanich and Sergiy Karazy
"The enemy's mission is to sow panic and create chaos. However, in the northern operational zone (including Kyiv), everything is under complete control," General Serhiy Naev, Commander of the Joint Forces of the Armed Forces, said.
The six Kinzhals, ballistic missiles which travel at up to 10 times the speed of sound, were among a volley of 18 missiles Russia fired at Ukraine overnight, lighting up Kyiv with flashes and raining debris after they were blasted from the sky.
Russia's defence ministry said it had destroyed a U.S.-built Patriot surface-to-air missile defence system with a Kinzhal missile, the Zvezda military news outlet reported.
But the commander-in-chief of Ukraine's armed forces, Valeriy Zaluzhnyi said all had been successfully intercepted.
City authorities in the Ukrainian capital said three people were wounded by falling debris.
11 months ago
Reuters
In first, Kyiv says it shoots down volley of Russian hypersonic missiles
Story by By Gleb Garanich and Sergiy Karazy • 9:14 pm - 16-5-2023
By Gleb Garanich and Sergiy Karazy
KYIV (Reuters) - Ukraine said on Tuesday it had shot down six Russian hypersonic Kinzhal missiles in a single night, thwarting a superweapon Moscow had previously touted as all but unstoppable.
It was the first time Ukraine had claimed to have struck an entire volley of multiple hypersonic missiles, and if confirmed would be a demonstration of the effectiveness of newly deployed Western air defences.
Air raid sirens blared across nearly all of Ukraine early on Tuesday and were heard over Kyiv and its region for more than three hours.
Aftermath of a Russian missile attack in Kyiv
© Thomson Reuters
In first, Kyiv says it shoots down volley of Russian hypersonic missiles
Story by By Gleb Garanich and Sergiy Karazy • 9:14 pm - 16-5-2023
By Gleb Garanich and Sergiy Karazy
KYIV (Reuters) - Ukraine said on Tuesday it had shot down six Russian hypersonic Kinzhal missiles in a single night, thwarting a superweapon Moscow had previously touted as all but unstoppable.
It was the first time Ukraine had claimed to have struck an entire volley of multiple hypersonic missiles, and if confirmed would be a demonstration of the effectiveness of newly deployed Western air defences.
Air raid sirens blared across nearly all of Ukraine early on Tuesday and were heard over Kyiv and its region for more than three hours.
Aftermath of a Russian missile attack in Kyiv
© Thomson Reuters
11 months ago
Sky News Australia
Trump derangement syndrome has 'coloured a poor chapter' in American democracy
Story by Sky News Australia • 7:39 pm - 16-5-2023
Sky News contributor Gary Hardgrave says Trump derangement syndrome has “coloured a poor chapter” in American democracy as voters simply want a “play on the ball not the man” approach
“They cant get him on policy – they’re trying to get him on personality,” Mr Hardgrave told Sky News host Rita Panahi.
“It is a wonder they don’t go back and blame Donald Trump or one of his forbears for giving brummie advice to Davy Crockett and causing the Alamo.
“He is responsible apparently for everything.”
Trump derangement syndrome has 'coloured a poor chapter' in American democracy
© Provided by Sky News Australia
Trump derangement syndrome has 'coloured a poor chapter' in American democracy
Story by Sky News Australia • 7:39 pm - 16-5-2023
Sky News contributor Gary Hardgrave says Trump derangement syndrome has “coloured a poor chapter” in American democracy as voters simply want a “play on the ball not the man” approach
“They cant get him on policy – they’re trying to get him on personality,” Mr Hardgrave told Sky News host Rita Panahi.
“It is a wonder they don’t go back and blame Donald Trump or one of his forbears for giving brummie advice to Davy Crockett and causing the Alamo.
“He is responsible apparently for everything.”
Trump derangement syndrome has 'coloured a poor chapter' in American democracy
© Provided by Sky News Australia
12 months ago
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