The Clawdbot/Openclaw madness was already strange enough. Now there’s a platform where AI agents can rent a human to do the physical tasks—the meatspace errands—they cannot manage themselves.
I confess I didn’t have “humans as gig workers for their AI overlords” on my 2026 bingo card. And yet here we are.
• Spain announces plans to ban social media for under-16s (bbc.com) Spain announces plans to join Australia, France, Norway and Denmark in banning early teens from social media for their privacy and wellbeing.
• Australia’s long, complicated energy transition is finally working (theguardian.com) Not long ago, it was said Australia’s grid could never handle more than 20% renewables. Now we’re at 50%. Hitting 82% in four years is a stretch, but real progress is happening.
• This is bigger than anyone had imagined (youtube.com) The Epstein files are out, but the cover-up is just beginning. Walkley Award winning journalist, Michael West delivers a blistering critique on why the “pedophile protection racket” is the final nail in the coffin for Western moral authority.
• ‘AI swarms’ are mass-producing credible misinformation. (observer.co.uk) Prof. John Naughton, writes AI swarms are mass-producing credible misinformation, posing a threat to democracy.
Announcement via x/twitter tweet
This is from the official, verified account for OpenAI’s developer updates. Faster response, less energy. Amazing strides forward.
I spend more time than I should scrolling through AI announcements, most of which amount to nothing. The ratio of noise to signal in this space is punishing. So when something lands that moves markets within hours of release, it catches my attention.
I came across a video from Mark Kashef that outlines, succinctly and without the usual fluff, a genuinely significant capability from Anthropic: enterprise workflow plugins for Claude Co-Work.
• Why software stocks are getting pummelled {paywall} (economist.com) Examines why software stocks have been declining. An AI upheaval may be imminent. Two risks dominate: AI coding tools now let companies build software faster and in-house, and AI-native enterprise startups threaten to undercut incumbents with smarter, more automated alternatives.
• It’s meant to help, but 60% of Aussies loathe this car feature (drive.com.au) Examines why 60% of Australians dislike advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) such as lane keep assistance, despite their safety benefits.
• Firefox is adding a switch to turn AI features off (blog.mozilla.org) From Firefox 148 (Feb 24), Firefox adds a single settings panel to disable all current and future AI features, while still allowing granular control for users who opt in.
• China bans hidden car door handles over safety concerns (bbc.com) China has banned hidden EV door handles, requiring mechanical inside and outside releases after safety concerns linked to fatal crashes where power failures prevented doors from opening.
Once a fixture on ABC TV election night coverage, Antony Green, now retired, continues to provide meaningful election analysis. Once a psephologist, always a psephologist! (Try saying that fast.)
For real insights on Aussie political trends his blog is worth bookmarking, or better yet, adding to your RSS feeds.
I love a good chart. This one hits hard. It is quietly confronting.
• Bitcoin Drops 40% in Four Months (slashdot.org) Bloomberg attributing it to a lack of buyers and waning belief in the cryptocurrency.
• Careful how we assess new company tax mix. (theconversation.com) A company tax cut results in lower income for Australians. If instead we add a cash flow tax, that will reverse these losses by collecting more revenue from foreign investors and multinational corporations.
• A Review Of The Adobe Project Indigo App For iPhone (decafjournal.com) A better iPhone camera? Adobe Project Indigo app takes a different path.
• LG joins the rest of the world; accepts that people don’t want 8K TVs (arstechnica.com) LG Display ceases production of 8K LCD and OLED panels, citing lack of market demand and content ecosystem.
I’m not a one-eyed Apple fan. It’s just they make good stuff. Like this 2007 keyboard which has only just started playing up. 19 years is pretty good. You can see how hard it’s been worked, with the A and the S virtually worn off.
As 2026 Formula 1 testing begins, it’s worth pausing to appreciate just how far the technology has come. Modern Formula 1 engines scream to maximum RPM with components that, remarkably, are built layer by layer from metal dust and lasers. Honda’s championship-winning pistons aren’t forged in the traditional sense. They’re printed.
