Issue 2278 - Tuesday 25 February, 2025

Sorry about borking the link to the security firm blog post on the ByBit heist yesterday (Trail of Bits blog). As penance, here’s another, even denser read about it (Elliptic).

In Today’s Issue

The News

Aussie telcos to have Australia-wide coverage using satellites under Labor proposal

All Australians will get voice and text message coverage no matter where they are under Labor’s plan for universal coverage obligations on mobile phone carriers by 2027 (Communications Minister). Labor says it will legislate expanding the remit of universal obligations for broadband and phone lines to include mobile phone coverage, too, citing the advances in low earth orbit (LEO) satellite companies like Vodafone Global, Link Global and, sigh, Starlink. Cards on the table, mobile coverage literally can be a matter of life or death in the bush so it seems like a Good Idea but the Productivity Commission and the Telco Ombudsman have previously pooh-poohed the obligation (ABC News). As previously Sizzled, Telstra and Optus are already inking deals like this. Presumably MVNOs will be covered under the existing LEO deals but presumably bumping their costs. Just back on Starlink for one sec: the US is reportedly threatening to cut off Starlink coverage as part of their blackma— I mean negotiations to access the eastern European country’s critical minerals (Reuters). Very cool! Seems like we should probably be careful about hitching our wagon to the country.

Relatedly, TPG’s CEO seems to have a direct line to the Australian to have his complaints about the NBN published every week, this time taking aim at a government levy for wireless internet providers to the NBN for its regional coverage (The Australian, $). And the communications watchdog ACMA has released some rules for how telcos should handle customers experiencing family violence if you want to have a stickybeak and a say (ACMA).

Is this a sign that the AI bubble is popping? Not so fast

Did you notice the Sizzle went two whole editions without mentioning AI? What a breath of fresh air. Anyway, a new report that Microsoft is cancelling US data centre leases has gotten some people excited that we’re finally seeing the AI bubble pop (Bloomberg, $). Here’s the analysts’ one page report that prompted the news cycle if you want to read it yourself (Threads direct image link) which is certainly a lot more cautious than some people are suggesting. Microsoft isn’t reducing CapEx yet, so this might be less the bubble bursting and more Microsoft saying “we can outsource the big costs of development to OpenAI — which we have a stake in — and we just need to build capacity to actually run these models which is what actually makes money.”

It’s not too dissimilar a stance to Telstra CEO Vicki Brady who bravely said /s that Australia doesn’t need to invest in “building Large Language Models” (Information Age). Honestly, I’m not sure I agree? Considering how DeepSeek has shown it’s possible to cheaply-ish build a model, would it be crazy to throw couple hundred mill at it? Maybe the reason that the government shouldn’t do that is demonstrated in this story: the government’s auditor has pinged the tax office for using AI models that it knows are “free from biases, meet modern data ethics standards and produced easily exchangeable results” (according to ITNews).

Aussie Tesla owners suing Elon Musk over dodgy cars and over-promising

Australian Tesla owners are suing the electric vehicle (and maybe robotics?) company in a class action suit that alleges that the cars were beset by problems and could not do what was advertised (News.com.au, sorry). I haven’t actually seen the Federal Court filings but the law firm representing the owners says the case is about three issues: its “full-self-driving” features, phantom braking and the vehicles’ range promises. Also just for noting, the Australian tech lobby the Tech Council of Australia has launched its Consumer Energy Tech Alliance which is going to push for better regulation and policies like upgrading the grid so it can handle renewables (Capital Brief). Nice to have some lobbying on this from a group with a few heavy-hitters — one of its member companies is backed by Mike Cannon-Brooke and Scott Farquhar — behind it.

Oh, Also

Here’s a good reason to go touch grass

Struggle to exercise self control when it comes to playing with your phone? Wish you could get offline a bit more and touch grass? I personally don’t, I love my phone. But if this speaks to you, then I have just the app for you: Touch Grass.

Developer Rhys Kentish has previewed an app to be released next month that will block access to apps until you literally go and touch grass. Your phone won’t let you open selected apps until you use your smartphone camera to capture yourself err… touching grass?

Bargains

Electrical & Electronics

Computing

Mobile

The End

😎 The Sizzle is written by Cam Wilson and emailed every weekday afternoon. It was created by Anthony “decryption” Agius.

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Always Was, Always Will Be Aboriginal Land

The Sizzle is created on Gadigal land and acknowledges the traditional owners of country throughout Australia, recognising their continuing connection to land, water and community. I pay my respect to them and their cultures and to elders both past and present.