InnovationAus Podcast

The startling results in the US mid-term elections - and the role that the data centre boom played - has implications for Australian policymakers and the approach to building infrastructure in the country.

It was a busy week in Canberra with House of Reps sitting, Senate estimates and hearings of the Joint Select Committee on AI all week. In this NewsWrap, Justin Hendry talks through the debate on R&D and capital gains tax changes that passed the House, and sets up a final stoush in November.

Data centres have become a singular point of focus for community concerns about the future. But they are also the subject of massive government FOMO. The past year has been a wild ride for Data Centres Australia founder and CEO Belinda Dennett, as she tells the Commercial Disco podcast.

Sara Goldsworthy is the founder/CEO of Corro, a highly secure, single-pane view communications platform for governments and large enterprises. Corro's mission is to fix fragmented messaging platforms, while maintaining bombproof security. As a former senior public servant who worked across the national security space, it is a role she was made for.

A National Semiconductor Roadmap was rolled out this week in Sydney at the industry's annual conference - Justin Hendry was there and provides some insight into this landmark document. Also, what did AI expert Toby Walsh say at the joint select committee that got members cranky?

UnderTech co-founder and chief executive Emily Pyke is a former Navy electronic warfare petty officer, a startup entrepreneur and in 2025 was named the Prime Minister’s Veteran Entrepreneur of the Year. In this episode, James Riley about what it like to be an Australian dual-use startup selling into the defence sector.

The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) CEO Annabelle Herd says the creative industries are in the fight of their lives against AI companies seeking to up-end local copyright protections. It's a David versus Goliath fight, and the rest of the world is watching.

An unusual letter from the Joint Select Committee on AI to the Prime Minister with interim recommendations, complete with Track Changes indicating the depth of input from the PM's office, was all it took to put a carefully constructed campaign to 'earn' social licence onto shaky ground. 

With four straight days of hearings this week of the Joint Select Committee on AI, the difficulties facing decision makers have become more apparent. How these complexities will be resolved (especially on copyright) is not clear. InnovationAus editor Justin Hendry and James Riley step through the cavalcade of witnesses.

Former Industry minister Ed Husic says his work on AI safety in the first term of the Albanese government has been 'validated'. He says the work done two years ago on regulation should be picked up again. InnovationAus.com editor Justin Hendry tracks the guardrail timeline.