☕️ Trump and Albanese at UN General Assembly

Its Punctuation Day.

Did you get that joke?

The quote: “Raising children will always require time, money, patience and compromise. But there is a difference between the inherent work of raising a child and the unnecessary difficulty created by systems designed for another era.”
Georgie Dent, CEO of parent advocacy organisation The Parenthood, in an address to the National Press Club.

The stat: $1 million. The reward offered by the South Australian Government for information on those responsible for four-year-old Gus Lamont’s disappearance, or the recovery of his remains. Lamont disappeared from his family’s rural home a year ago this week.

The big question:

Yesterday’s results: 17% of you said the biggest thing stopping you from having a side hustle is not having enough time. 40% of you said you just don’t want to. Thanks for voting - your responses inform TDA's journalism and research. [1,873 votes].

Together with AAP.

It can take 8-12 weeks to find out if a cancer treatment is working - a long wait for an answer.

Brisbane biotech Gelomics is closing that gap, using Google AI trained on lab-grown, personalised tumours so one day doctors can know what will work before a patient commences treatment. We sat down with CEO Dr Christoph Meinert to learn how it works.

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Aussie singer-songwriter Tones And I has turned down the opportunity to provide the pre-game entertainment for the NRL Grand Final.

Early reporting suggested Tones was staying true to her ‘Dance Monkey’ message, refusing to play her number one hit in the performance.

NRL boss Peter V’landys blamed “artistic differences” for the fall out, while Tones has cited “prior commitments”.

While Byron Bay busker-turned-chart-topper Tones And I was rumoured to be providing the pre-game entertainment, the NRL announced this week there would be no show.

Australian Rugby League Commission Chairman Peter V’landys told the Today Show the NRL had been “toying with the idea” of scrapping entertainment “for years”.

V’landys said that “rather than spending $100,000 a minute over 11 minutes on a performer,” the league will invest $1 million in “grassroots” rugby league for “underprivileged kids”.

V’landys was asked about rumours that the decision was due to Tones refusing to play ‘Dance Monkey’, the 2019 track that shot her to fame and broke the ARIA record for most weeks spent at number one.

“I don’t want to get into the negotiations… we love Tones And I,” he said, adding that “artistic differences couldn’t be resolved”.

In a statement shared with the ABC, Tones’ management team said “an offer was presented” to the singer earlier this month.

“Tones had a prior commitment with Macklemore in America and explored all avenues to make it work,” they said. “Nothing was signed or confirmed in writing.”

Macklemore’s next confirmed show is at Colorado’s Red Rocks Amphitheatre on 22 October, more than two weeks after the NRL Grand Final.

There is nothing published by Macklemore, the venue, or event promoters addressing Tones And I’s inclusion in the show — however, the “commitment with Macklemore” may not be a tour appearance.

Tones’ website says her next tour date is the Deniliquin Ute Muster on 3 October, the day before the Grand Final.

Reporting by Emily Donohoe.

🎧 On today’s TDA podcast, features editor Emma explains the rape allegation against ‘looksmaxxer’ Clavicular. Listen or watch on Apple here, Spotify here, or YouTube here.

🍿 Want to know what’s going on with the Paramount and Warner Bros merger? Sign up to TDA Culture here for a breakdown in your inbox at 5pm.

⚡️ Upgrading home energy can give Aussie homes huge clean-energy power. To help, Rewiring Australia built Electric Saul with Google AI. CEO Francis Vierboom joins the podcast to discuss.

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AI, ongoing conflicts, and governments’ responsibilities online have been key topics at this year’s UN General Assembly (UNGA) General Debate in New York.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese launched Australia’s bid for a seat on the UN Security Council and signed a joint statement calling for global guardrails on AI.

Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump pushed back against the call for international AI controls in his address to the UNGA.

Albanese said Trump’s position did not undermine his own tech agenda “at all”.

Each year, the UNGA holds its General Debate, where leaders and representatives from the UN’s 193 member states deliver speeches and hold meetings throughout the week.

This year, nearly 130 heads of state and government are expected to speak. Leaders are given a voluntary 15-minute limit for their speeches, although many run over.

On Monday, Albanese launched Australia’s bid to serve as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council for the 2029–30 two-year term. Australia last held a seat on the council in 2013–14.

Nationals Leader Matt Canavan criticised the bid, saying: “The Prime Minister should be prioritising the cost of living here at home, not spending time to get a seat on some international board overseas”.

Albanese was one of 22 signatories, from countries including Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, and EU members, to issue a warning about “frontier AI models”.

They said the most advanced AI “poses serious risks to safety and security if not appropriately managed”. The statement calls for transparent safety protocols, common standards and shared reporting of “serious safety incidents”.

In his speech, Trump said the U.S. “totally rejects any attempt to construct a globalist scheme” to control AI, rejecting the proposed international body to oversee the technology.

Trump also said U.S. Government documents would now use “super intelligence” instead of “artificial intelligence,” arguing that “artificial” “makes it sound fake”.

The U.S. also warned Australia its draft Digital Duty of Care law, which would make tech companies responsible for protecting users from online harms, could become “a mechanism for viewpoint-based censorship”.

In response, Albanese said: “It’s not about government control, it’s about giving people back control over what they receive on their devices”.

Separately, Trump signed a security agreement with Greenland and Denmark allowing the U.S. to establish two new military bases in the self-governing Danish territory. Greenland’s future has been a key topic since Trump began his second term.

Trump also addressed the conflict with Iran in his speech, rhetorically asking whether he should make a deal or “annihilate the Islamic Republic”.

Reporting by Emily Donohoe.

Do you know what the average HECS debt in your suburb is?

Almost half of Australia’s total $67.7 billion Higher Education Contribution Scheme (HECS-HELP) debt is held within the country’s two largest cities, while the national average HECS balance sits at $28,500.

Whether that's news to you or it hits close to home, it's a sign to check out TDA Finance. Get clear, credible and engaging finance updates, direct to your inbox every Wednesday morning.

Lian Yunzhi competed at two World Cube Association competitions this month, where she broke the women’s average world record… twice. Lian solved the standard 3x3x3 Rubik’s Cube five times in average times of 4.52 and 4.27 seconds at the respective competitions. She’s the first female ‘speedcuber’ to average under 4.5 seconds.

Reporting by Emma Gillespie.

Scientists have discovered a dolphin’s seriously sick way of fishing: it scares fish until they spew, then eats their leftovers.

Researchers documented a male bottlenose dolphin, nicknamed Bubbles, doing this 20 times off Australia’s Lady Elliot Island.

Bubbles can chase one fish for up to 30 minutes, and researchers think his vocalisations may stress the fish into vomiting. That’s dolphinitely the scariest story I’ve read all week.

Reporting by Pavitra Ravi.