Should big tech be allowed to mine Australians’ text and data to train AI? The Productivity Commission is considering it
The Productivity Commission is examining whether technology firms should be exempted from copyright rules that stop companies from mining text and data to train artificial intelligence models.The PC, in its interim report into “harnessing data and the digital economy”, used copyright as a case study for how Australia’s existing regulatory framework could be adapted to manage the risks of artificial intelligence.A key recommendation from the interim report was that the federal government should conduct a sweeping review of regulations to plug potential gaps that could be exploited by “bad actors” using AI.Scott Farquhar, the co-founder of software company Atlassian, last week called for an “urgent” overhaul of Australia’s copyright rules, arguing they were out of step with other comparable countries.Farquhar said creating exemptions for text and data mining to train large language models “could unlock billions of dollars of foreign investment into Australia”.
That suggestion has been rejected by the Copyright Agency, a not-for-profit organisation that collects and distributes royalties to thousands of copyright holders.The agency has argued instead for the government to create a new compensation scheme for creators of content used by tech companies to train their AI models.Sign up: AU Breaking News emailStephen King, one of two commissioners leading the PC’s inquiry into harnessing the opportunities of the digital economy, said: “Copyright is a great example of where Australia needs to sit back and ask: ‘Are our laws fit for purpose with AI?’”“The obvious harm is that an AI company may use copyright materials without providing appropriate compensation.On the other side, we want the development of AI-specific tools that use that copyrighted material,” King said.“It may be possible to say, can we approach AI the same way we have approached copyright in other ways, through copyright collections.
Music is played everywhere, so we have set up collecting societies that are authorised under our competition laws, and they act on behalf of singers, songwriters and creators.”King said the PC was asking for feedback on other options, before a final recommendation by the end of the year.“We have a fair dealing exemption that doesn’t include text and data mining, maybe that should be an exemption – as long as AI companies are gaining legal copies and they have paid for it.”In its third of five thematic reports, the commission said artificial intelligence could resuscitate Australia’s moribund productivity.PC modelling showed that even the most conservative estimate was that AI would deliver a $116bn boost to the economy over the next decade.
King said that this translated into a $4,300 kicker to the average Australian’s real wage in 10 years’ time, and that the actual benefits could be much larger,The commission advised against creating an overarching AI-specific piece of legislation, and warned that clumsy or excessive regulation risked stifling the technology’s potentially transformative benefits,That message is likely to be well received by the government, with Andrew Leigh, the assistant minister for productivity, backing this approach,But King said the commission was not arguing for a minimalist approach to AI regulation,“It’s not light-touch at all.
What we are saying is that AI is going to make it easier, cheaper and faster for bad actors to engage in harmful conduct.But most of that harmful conduct is already illegal,” he said.“Let’s work out where the harms are and see whether they are covered by existing law.And if they are, let’s make sure the regulators have the resources and powers to stop the bad actors.”The PC’s interim report also backed changing privacy rules to incorporate an outcomes-based approach, rather than a “box-ticking” exercise where businesses “comply with the letter of the law but not the spirit of it”.
The commission said the government “should support new pathways to allow individuals and businesses to access and share data that relates to them”.
‘The Earl of Sandwich is rolling in his grave’: Tesco’s birthday cake sandwich divides opinion
Tesco has launched a birthday cake sandwich, complete with strawberry jam, soft cheese, vanilla frosting and sprinkles – but the candle isn’t included.The limited-edition sandwich, between slices of brioche-style white bread, contains 31.g of sugar – 35% of an adult’s recommended daily intake – and will be on sale for £3 at 1,000 stores for four weeks.Videos of people trying out the sandwich have attracted tens of thousands of views on TikTok over the past 24 hours.Some Tesco customers expressed scepticism on Reddit
Ofwat chief executive to step down ahead of regulator’s abolition
The chief executive of Ofwat is to step down at the end of the month, after the government announced the abolition of the water regulator for England and Wales.David Black has been in the role for four years, and will leave amid intense scrutiny of water companies and their regulators.Ofwat said the government will appoint a new interim chief executive before its abolition.The regulation of the English and Welsh water industry has become a key political issue in recent years, including during last year’s general election, amid a wave of anger over sewage spilling into Britain’s rivers and seas.Black’s decision comes as the government and the environment secretary, Steve Reed, prepare for what they have billed as the biggest overhaul of water regulation since the industry was privatised in 1989
Tech’s trillion-dollar binge, Palantir’s empire and women’s privacy under attack
Hello, and welcome to TechScape. This week, tech companies are spending amounts of money that stretch the limits of the imagination. Donald Trump’s administration is spending more money with data analytics and surveillance firm Palantir. And women on both sides of the Pacific face the extreme difficulty of keeping intimate moments private online.In last week’s edition of the newsletter, my colleagues wrote about the upshot of Google’s earnings call: lots of money earned, but, more importantly lots of money spent on AI
Tesla shareholders sue Elon Musk for allegedly hyping up faltering Robotaxi
Tesla shareholders sued Elon Musk and the electric vehicle maker for allegedly concealing the significant risk posed by company’s self-driving vehicles.The proposed class-action suit, which accuses Musk and Tesla of securities fraud, was filed on Monday night. Tesla conducted its first public test of its self-driving taxis in late June near the company’s headquarters in Austin, Texas. That test showed the vehicles speeding, braking suddenly, driving over a curb, entering the wrong lane and dropping off passengers in the middle of multilane roads. The National Highway Transit Safety Administration (NHTSA), the main transportation regulator in the US, is investigating the Robotaxi’s pilot test
Next up, the Ashes – and England will need Ben Stokes at his all-round best | Ali Martin
The England-India epic that ended up like two weary prizefighters trading blows will live long in the memory – a 2‑2 classic for which the players on both sides deserve immense credit. Not that Mohammed Siraj, still hitting 90mph on the speed gun on the 25th day, showed weariness. If anything, he could well hold the key to solving the world’s energy problems.Plaudits in particular go to three men who stepped up bravely when other sports would have simply subbed them off: Shoaib Bashir bowled with a broken left hand at Lord’s; Rishabh Pant batted with a broken foot at Old Trafford; and then Chris Woakes, Horatio Nelson armed with a Gray-Nicolls, followed him in folklore at the Oval. Don’t be fooled by the white flannels and the stoppages for tea – Test cricket is a brutal sport
Trump to announce White House taskforce for 2028 LA Olympics
Donald Trump is expected to announce on Tuesday that he will create a White House taskforce to oversee elements of the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.The president is set to sign an executive order establishing the taskforce, which will include cabinet members and government officials and will handle security and transportation on the first games in the US in nearly three decades. The announcement comes after a summer of political clashes between the administration and Los Angeles leaders.“During his first term, President Trump was instrumental in securing America’s bid to host the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. The president considers it a great honor to oversee this global sporting spectacle in his second term,” Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, said in a statement
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