Oct
22
2026
A new and powerful Australian artificial intelligence model can comb through data from confidential pharmaceutical trials – both failed and successful – to help big pharma companies avoid wasting their resources on already investigated dead ends. Australian start-up Qubigen developed the AI algorithm that can learn from confidential medical, chemical and biological data and help …read more
Oct
22
2026
An intentionally lit fire in a Queensland backpackers’ hostel in 2000 killed 15 people and eventually led to an improved fire safety system across the state. “That was our genesis,” says Scott Jackson, CEO of the safety technology company Locatrix, which offers an integrated platform connecting geospatially accurate indoor floor plans, site-specific emergency training and …read more
Jul
22
2026
Investors and analysts remain wary of ASX-listed insurers, concerned earnings are at a cyclical peak after years of strong returns. “The market tends to reward earnings recovery where it looks repeatable,” said Janice How, professor of finance at the Queensland University of Technology. “In insurance, that means disciplined pricing and careful risk management, not just …read more
Jun
2
2026
Defence has received more than 25 co-investment proposals in the three months since the Advanced Capabilities Investment Fund (ACIF) was launched, demonstrating broad support for the new financing model. Designed to boost the domestic defence industry, the ACI Fund offers co-contributions of up to $500m to encourage private sector investment in defence and in dual-use …read more
May
26
2026
Australia will invest billions of dollars in autonomous weapons systems over the next decade while simultaneously taking part in international negotiations to restrict and control their use. Autonomous weapons systems – particularly drones – have been deployed in Gaza, Sudan, the Red Sea and in the US-Iran conflict, and with deadly effect during the Ukraine-Russia …read more
Feb
25
2026
Whole-body three-dimensional scanners have been used to photograph all the sun-affected skin of nearly 10,000 volunteers for a revolutionary research study which has so far found 500 potentially fatal melanomas, along with many other less dangerous skin cancers. The Australian Centre of Excellence in Melanoma Imaging and Diagnosis (ACEMID) has boosted skin-cancer screening research with …read more
Feb
25
2026
Black soldier flies can be used to address two of Australia’s largest environmental problems: food waste and plastics pollution. Australia produces 7.6 million tonnes of food waste annually, and 84 per cent of the nation’s plastic waste ends up in landfill every year. Research now underway at Southern Cross University is delving into the many …read more
Nov
26
2025
Big inter-disciplinary projects are the new face of successful university research – collaborations by researchers from a range of fields working together to find solutions or to better understand the fundamental problems. These collaborations might include leading university researchers from all the STEM disciplines working with lawyers or historians or social science academics.
Nov
17
2025
Still hand-made after 13 years of manufacture, Loco Love chocolates are free of all gluten, dairy or refined sugars. The range includes Maple, Macadamia Caramel, Classic Chewy Caramel and newcomer Pistachio Mylk Praline. The Byron Bay-based company now produces as many as 120,000 individual chocolate bars each week and continues to have trouble meeting ever-increasing …read more
Nov
4
2025
In this new age of AI-enabled warfare, Australia’s Defence Department needs to rethink the way it procures military equipment, says Professor Toby Walsh, Scientia Professor of Artificial Intelligence at the University of NSW’s Department of Computer Science and Engineering. “The ADF typically puts out a tender, a specification, and throws a lot of money at …read more