Friday Headlines: Anthony Albanese facing increasing anger from Bondi victims' families, heavily armed tactical police arrest seven men in Sydney’s southwest, migrant intake hits three-year low, Australia facing storms and heatwaves today as Christmas Day forecast drops and our fav stories of 2025!

Take part in The Briefing survey HERE. 

Deep Dive: Australia has a long track record of world-changing research, from Wi-Fi to the bionic ear, and now one Melbourne academic thinks the next frontier might be in comedic robots.  

University of Melbourne researcher Dr Robert Walton has received more than half a million dollars in public funding to explore whether AI and robots can perform believable comedy, and what it can teach us about humour and human-machine interaction.  

In this episode of The Briefing, Chris Spyrou speaks with Dr Walton about what this research could mean far beyond the stage. 

Follow The Briefing: 
TikTok: @thebriefingpod
Instagram: @thebriefingpodcast 
YouTube: @TheBriefingPodcast
Facebook: @thebriefingpodcast

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.