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#55 Sovereign Digital Chains | Swaroop Tulsidas - Part 1
Australia can’t be fully sovereign in tech - but it can be more prepared.
In this episode of Intelligence Optimised, Todd Crowley speaks with Swaroop Tulsidas - formerly of CSIRO and a key figure in the creation of Nature IQ - about practical sovereignty: how to cut risk in an interconnected world by building the right capabilities at home and choosing dependencies wisely.
They map the landscape: AI, IoT, digital twins and cloud; the rise of super apps in Southeast Asia; and the policy trade-offs that shape markets and data rights. On the ground, examples matter. We examine Australian moves like an emerging sovereign large language model trained on local content, a digital twin platform for faster infrastructure design, and low-power IoT for agriculture (e.g., smart collars for welfare and tracking). Each points to sovereign digital infrastructure as a means to lift decision speed and reduce exposure in Indo-Pacific supply chains.
The conversation tackles environmental regulation and investment timing. With the EPBC Act review flagging gaps, Australia needs clearer rules and faster approvals so capital can flow into housing, energy transition and critical industry without sidelining natural capital. We discuss sequencing natural-capital risk (start with direct exposure, then supply-chain Scope 3), and how predictive analytics and real-time monitoring help leaders move from reports to decisions.
Hardware and materials remain hard limits. Australia depends on chips and compute built offshore, and on magnets tied to rare earths where China dominates mining, refining and manufacturing. That creates real risk if regional tensions escalate. Leaders should plan for alternatives, diversify suppliers, and back local processing and manufacturing where it moves the needle.
Strategic takeaways:
✔️ Use AI digital twins for scenario planning and approvals to cut months from decisions.
✔️ Treat natural capital as an asset on the balance sheet to guide trade-offs.
✔️ Map supply chains for social and commodity risk; set triggers for rerouting and substitution.
✔️ Assume partial sovereignty: decide which dependencies you will own, share or insure.
This is frank, usable insight for planners across defence, energy, agrifood, infrastructure and ICT in the Indo-Pacific.
Find deeper briefs inside Vaxa Bureau.
In this episode of Intelligence Optimised, Todd Crowley speaks with Swaroop Tulsidas - formerly of CSIRO and a key figure in the creation of Nature IQ - about practical sovereignty: how to cut risk in an interconnected world by building the right capabilities at home and choosing dependencies wisely.
They map the landscape: AI, IoT, digital twins and cloud; the rise of super apps in Southeast Asia; and the policy trade-offs that shape markets and data rights. On the ground, examples matter. We examine Australian moves like an emerging sovereign large language model trained on local content, a digital twin platform for faster infrastructure design, and low-power IoT for agriculture (e.g., smart collars for welfare and tracking). Each points to sovereign digital infrastructure as a means to lift decision speed and reduce exposure in Indo-Pacific supply chains.
The conversation tackles environmental regulation and investment timing. With the EPBC Act review flagging gaps, Australia needs clearer rules and faster approvals so capital can flow into housing, energy transition and critical industry without sidelining natural capital. We discuss sequencing natural-capital risk (start with direct exposure, then supply-chain Scope 3), and how predictive analytics and real-time monitoring help leaders move from reports to decisions.
Hardware and materials remain hard limits. Australia depends on chips and compute built offshore, and on magnets tied to rare earths where China dominates mining, refining and manufacturing. That creates real risk if regional tensions escalate. Leaders should plan for alternatives, diversify suppliers, and back local processing and manufacturing where it moves the needle.
Strategic takeaways:
✔️ Use AI digital twins for scenario planning and approvals to cut months from decisions.
✔️ Treat natural capital as an asset on the balance sheet to guide trade-offs.
✔️ Map supply chains for social and commodity risk; set triggers for rerouting and substitution.
✔️ Assume partial sovereignty: decide which dependencies you will own, share or insure.
This is frank, usable insight for planners across defence, energy, agrifood, infrastructure and ICT in the Indo-Pacific.
Find deeper briefs inside Vaxa Bureau.
View all episodes
By Todd CrowleyAustralia can’t be fully sovereign in tech - but it can be more prepared.
In this episode of Intelligence Optimised, Todd Crowley speaks with Swaroop Tulsidas - formerly of CSIRO and a key figure in the creation of Nature IQ - about practical sovereignty: how to cut risk in an interconnected world by building the right capabilities at home and choosing dependencies wisely.
They map the landscape: AI, IoT, digital twins and cloud; the rise of super apps in Southeast Asia; and the policy trade-offs that shape markets and data rights. On the ground, examples matter. We examine Australian moves like an emerging sovereign large language model trained on local content, a digital twin platform for faster infrastructure design, and low-power IoT for agriculture (e.g., smart collars for welfare and tracking). Each points to sovereign digital infrastructure as a means to lift decision speed and reduce exposure in Indo-Pacific supply chains.
The conversation tackles environmental regulation and investment timing. With the EPBC Act review flagging gaps, Australia needs clearer rules and faster approvals so capital can flow into housing, energy transition and critical industry without sidelining natural capital. We discuss sequencing natural-capital risk (start with direct exposure, then supply-chain Scope 3), and how predictive analytics and real-time monitoring help leaders move from reports to decisions.
Hardware and materials remain hard limits. Australia depends on chips and compute built offshore, and on magnets tied to rare earths where China dominates mining, refining and manufacturing. That creates real risk if regional tensions escalate. Leaders should plan for alternatives, diversify suppliers, and back local processing and manufacturing where it moves the needle.
Strategic takeaways:
✔️ Use AI digital twins for scenario planning and approvals to cut months from decisions.
✔️ Treat natural capital as an asset on the balance sheet to guide trade-offs.
✔️ Map supply chains for social and commodity risk; set triggers for rerouting and substitution.
✔️ Assume partial sovereignty: decide which dependencies you will own, share or insure.
This is frank, usable insight for planners across defence, energy, agrifood, infrastructure and ICT in the Indo-Pacific.
Find deeper briefs inside Vaxa Bureau.
In this episode of Intelligence Optimised, Todd Crowley speaks with Swaroop Tulsidas - formerly of CSIRO and a key figure in the creation of Nature IQ - about practical sovereignty: how to cut risk in an interconnected world by building the right capabilities at home and choosing dependencies wisely.
They map the landscape: AI, IoT, digital twins and cloud; the rise of super apps in Southeast Asia; and the policy trade-offs that shape markets and data rights. On the ground, examples matter. We examine Australian moves like an emerging sovereign large language model trained on local content, a digital twin platform for faster infrastructure design, and low-power IoT for agriculture (e.g., smart collars for welfare and tracking). Each points to sovereign digital infrastructure as a means to lift decision speed and reduce exposure in Indo-Pacific supply chains.
The conversation tackles environmental regulation and investment timing. With the EPBC Act review flagging gaps, Australia needs clearer rules and faster approvals so capital can flow into housing, energy transition and critical industry without sidelining natural capital. We discuss sequencing natural-capital risk (start with direct exposure, then supply-chain Scope 3), and how predictive analytics and real-time monitoring help leaders move from reports to decisions.
Hardware and materials remain hard limits. Australia depends on chips and compute built offshore, and on magnets tied to rare earths where China dominates mining, refining and manufacturing. That creates real risk if regional tensions escalate. Leaders should plan for alternatives, diversify suppliers, and back local processing and manufacturing where it moves the needle.
Strategic takeaways:
✔️ Use AI digital twins for scenario planning and approvals to cut months from decisions.
✔️ Treat natural capital as an asset on the balance sheet to guide trade-offs.
✔️ Map supply chains for social and commodity risk; set triggers for rerouting and substitution.
✔️ Assume partial sovereignty: decide which dependencies you will own, share or insure.
This is frank, usable insight for planners across defence, energy, agrifood, infrastructure and ICT in the Indo-Pacific.
Find deeper briefs inside Vaxa Bureau.