An Australian drone parts maker will more than double its interim earnings after unprecedented demand for its technology due to ongoing geopolitical conflicts.

South Australian based Codan is forecasting a first-half profit of at least $160 million, up from $71.2 million in the same period in 2024/25 and close to its last annual profit of $175.2 million.

“Demand from conflict regions is currently exceptionally strong, reflecting the proven performance and reliability of our technology in these contested environments,” it said on Tuesday.

Codon’s shares spiked after the news and closed at an all time high of $64.02, up 23 per cent.

It didn’t say where the orders are coming from, but the Russia-Ukraine conflict has escalated into a round-the-clock drone war, with Russia pounding its enemy’s civilian infrastructure with new jet-powered drones and Ukraine retaliating with long-range drone strikes deep within Russian territory.

Between $400 million and $410 million of Codan’s its interim revenue will flow from its communications division, up from $221.8 million a year ago, the electronics and engineering pioneer said.

Codan’s communications division comprises Domo Tactical Communications and Zetron, both of which were acquired in 2021. 

DTC’s microwave technology allows drones or tactical teams to send secure, high-definition video feeds back to a command centre in real time, while Zetron sells communications infrastructure for command and control rooms.

Trading and order intake in both businesses continued to strengthen in the first quarter of 2026/27 and products are being sold at a profit margin of 40 per cent, up from 31 per cent last year.

Codan’s Minelab metal detector business has also been performing strongly, driven by the high price of gold and a favourable launch for its two new detectors – one of which sells for around $15,000.

An unexpectedly candid apology from one of the world’s largest artificial intelligence companies over a breach of Australian data will set an important precedent across the globe, experts say.

OpenAI issued an apology on Tuesday after a rogue agent breached a Medicare statistics portal during a training exercise in June, but did not notify the government until early September via a public Services Australia email account.

“We should have handled our response better. We are sorry and working to do better in the future,” the Sam Altman-led company said in a statement.

It will set up its own Australian-based task force, using domestic expertise to try and ward off the autonomous strength of AI. 

The company’s chief strategy officer Jason Kwon will face a government committee in early October.

There were questions to be asked about why OpenAI decided to take such a strong approach in the public domain, Australian National University lecturer Sarah Logan said.

While Australia is a small market for AI and does not wield as much influence as other middle powers, its legal landscape is often looked to by other nations, Dr Logan said.

She said Australia’s relationships with AI companies were consequential due to those factors.

“We are recognised as a strong democracy globally. What we do and what we say matters because of our legal system,” Dr Logan told AAP.

“Decisions made here about things like copyright, tax and regulation are influential globally as they enter into case law.”

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said OpenAI had been “constructive and open”, despite the breach raising concerns about the ability of AI agents to act on their own.

“We see (AI) as an opportunity, but we want to seize the benefit whilst mitigating the risks,” he told reporters in Adelaide on Tuesday.

OpenAI, which owns ChatGPT, has delayed the release of its new model GPT-6.1 Astra due to security concerns voiced by its researchers. 

Autonomous agents are known to have infiltrated American university and commerce department sites as well as the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

Tech leaders including Mr Altman and Anthropic’s Dario Amodei have urged a slowdown in development, given privacy risk and the potential for rogue agents.

The calls were likely made to allow companies time to get on top of Australian and US regulation while pausing competition from Chinese developers, Dr Logan said. 

“If you are trying to stave off the Chinese and slow things down for them, this is what you do. You try and get ahead of the regulation and try and shape it to your own benefit,” she said.

Australian shares have ended the day higher after Australia’s top central banker said the race that stops the nation won’t likely come alongside a rate hike that stops the economy.

The S&P/ASX200 edged 29.6 points higher on Tuesday, up 0.34 per cent, to 8,709.3, as the broader All Ordinaries gained 35.9 points, or 0.41 per cent, to 8,886.6.

A modest, late afternoon advance came after Reserve Bank governor Michele Bullock told reporters the central bank was in no rush to lift the official cash rate on Melbourne Cup Day, November 3.

“The point I want to make is that we’ve got to see how these four interest rate rises feed through,” Ms Bullock said.

“What we’re observing at the moment, what we’ll observe tomorrow, is a (consumer price index) number that happened a month ago.”

The Australian dollar is buying 69.90 US cents, down from 70.18 US cents on Monday at 5pm as expectations of a November rate hike softened.

Plans for a data centre in Sydney’s leafy north have been dumped after  the “grossly irresponsible” project prompted local furore. 

Lane Cove Council considered plans for a three-storey data centre right at the edge of an industrial zone. 

The 21,000sq m, 81MW facility – dubbed Project Mars – would have backed onto bushland and a residential neighbourhood. 

Some locals, including community groups and councillors, heavily opposed the construction.

Developer Goodman said the policy and regulatory environment had evolved significantly since planning began in March 2025. 

“Goodman has carefully considered these changes together with feedback received through the planning process, including the views of the local community,” the company said.

Local concerns had been raised over the potential light and noise pollution, and the impact on services for residents.

The council’s bush management committee also identified problems for plants and wildlife.

The serious concerns were significantly compounded by the potential for more data centres along Mars Road, it said.

Three other data centres already exist in or are proposed for Lane Cove West.

Utility providers similarly raised fears the development would strain infrastructure. 

Sydney Water previously submitted the existing drinking water systems had limited ability to serve the project. 

Goodman anticipated it would need constant supply of drinking water for cooling, with Project Mars requiring an estimated 1.4 million litres per day. 

Online, locals and some councillors celebrated the company’s decision to withdraw its application on Monday.

Goodman’s general manager Ben McGilp also faced pressure to drop the proposal during a recent Senate inquiry into artificial intelligence.

Liberal frontbencher Sarah Henderson said the project – about 20m from the closest house – was “wholly unreasonable”.

Project Mars was “frankly a grossly irresponsible proposal which shows contempt for local residents”, she said during the inquiry hearing.

The Department of Industry, Science and Resources said it welcomed “responsible investment” in AI and data centres, adding Goodman did not identify commonwealth policies as a reason for its decision.

“Goodman has publicly stated that its decision to withdraw Project Mars reflected a range of factors, including changes in the policy and regulatory environment and feedback received through the planning process,” the department said.

Australia and Southeast Asia must build on their longstanding trust and partnerships to capitalise on lucrative opportunities, amid global uncertainty and growing geopolitical tension.

At the opening of the Australia-ASEAN business forum in Adelaide on Tuesday, political and business leaders emphasised the need to move from discussing opportunities to delivering commercial outcomes for both regional neighbours.

The forum is addressing the region’s key economic challenges and opportunities, including energy security and the energy transition, digital technology and artificial intelligence, and agriculture and food security.

ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn said global tensions were testing the resilience of established systems.

Supply chains were being reconfigured, not just for efficiency, but increasingly for resilience, security and strategic confidence, Dr Kao said.

Reinforcing an open, rules-based trade and investment framework remains the backbone of ASEAN-Australian economic relations, built on two decades of steady work.

“In a time of uncertainty and economic rivalry … open markets, transparency, predictable rules, and trusted partnerships carry real weight,” he said.

Energy disruptions had shown energy security and a green transition must advance together.

“Achieving this will require investment scale, technological innovation, stronger regional connectivity, and effective public-private engagement and partnerships,” Dr Kao said.

Business Council of Australia chief executive Bran Black noted Southeast Asia was Australia’s second largest trading partner and trade reached $200 billion in 2025.

“We have a clear roadmap here in Australia to take that relationship further, but strong foundations don’t automatically deliver better outcomes,” he said.

“In a less predictable world, strong regional economic relationships are not simply an opportunity for growth, they are also a source of resilience at a time when it is needed.”

Competitive investment settings, deeper regional capability, and sustained commitment from business and government were needed to deliver on the relationship’s potential.

“The next phase of Australia’s economic relationship with ASEAN must translate strategies and agreements into tangible commercial outcomes, projects financed, supply chains strengthened, skills developed, and businesses growing together,” Mr Black said. 

Tracey Winters, chief strategy officer at energy company Santos, said a predicted rise in LNG demand in ASEAN nations of 182 per cent over the next decade meant Australia’s established gas industry could build a much deeper energy relationship.

“The opportunity is to build supply chains that run in both directions, to invest together, develop projects together, build capability together, and make the region’s energy system more resilient,” she said.

The scale of the opportunity was enormous, she said.

Southeast Asia’s energy demand would be dramatically larger, and Australia’s position would be remarkably close to the centre of that growth. 

“The opportunity is for us to build a deeper energy partnership, based on the recognition that our prosperity is interconnected,” she said.

Forum speakers are focusing on collaboration on renewable and conventional energy, critical minerals, infrastructure, technology and investment to strengthen regional energy security.

Anthropic plans ‌to caution potential investors in its IPO that advanced AI could pose “catastrophic or existential risks to humanity,” an extraordinary warning by a company seeking to profit from the same technology.

The ‌company’s IPO prospectus, reviewed by Reuters, highlights risks associated with its AI models, which it said could exhibit “self-preserving behaviours,” including attempts to “resist shutdown,” to “conceal or manipulate information” and behaviour “resembling blackmail.”

“Our development of ‌highly advanced models, platforms, and applications and expansion of use cases could further increase the risk that our models cause harm,” Anthropic said in the filing.

While public companies routinely outline product risks to investors, few, if any, have issued warnings suggesting their technology could cause potential human extinction.

Anthropic emphasised both the transformative potential of AI on par with industrialisation and electricity and the irreversible harm it could cause if mishandled.

Anthropic and other AI developers, including OpenAI, have faced scrutiny after incidents where experimental systems defied constraints, including a report of an OpenAI ‌model breaching Australia’s health system database.

Anthropic ‌safety researcher Evan Hubinger ⁠estimated a greater than 10 per cent probability that AI could kill humans within the next decade, echoing a sentiment by a ​former colleague, Jacob Coxon.

The company, which has positioned itself as a safety-first AI lab, devoted roughly 80 pages of the 261-page main body of its prospectus to laying out risk factors, nearly twice the 48 pages it used to describe its business.

“Potential model awareness of our evaluation efforts creates a significant limitation on our ability to assess model safety,” Anthropic said in the prospectus, adding that models sometimes develop unexpected capabilities during ⁠training that may not be discovered until they have been deployed and have resulted in significant safety ‌incidents.

AI researchers have ​also warned that as models grow more capable, they increasingly recognise when they are being watched and adjust their behaviour accordingly, which makes it harder to monitor model behaviour.

Anthropic declined ​to comment in ‌response to a request for comment.

Despite emphasising AI safety, Anthropic said returns on its safety investments are unclear.

It did not ​disclose in the filing how much the company was spending on such research. Earlier this month, Anthropic said about six per cent of the computing power it used for AI research went to safety work in a sample week in July.

The company, creator of Claude AI models, described safety efforts as “resource intensive” and said it must ​divide ​its limited funds between computing power, expensive AI talent and safety.

Anthropic said its customer usage, and as a result revenue, is driven by new models and that ‌a “continuous and overlapping cadence” of releases is “inherent to remaining at the frontier of AI development.”

Some analysts and experts have said no leading AI lab would slow down when doing so risks handing rivals an advantage in an industry where valuations can change with each release.

Anthropic has pledged in recent weeks to disclose more data publicly about how it uses AI models to ​build future generations of the technology, as experts warn about recursive self-improvement – the point at which models can develop on their own without human help.

“We believe building reliable, trustworthy, ​and secure AI systems is a collective responsibility ⁠and that the market will reward it,” Anthropic said in the filing.

A stretch of Oxford Street will be pedestrianised from next month, Mayor of London Sadiq Khan says.

Vehicles will be prohibited from accessing almost a kilometre between Orchard Street and Great Portland Street from October 26 and will instead be diverted onto nearby roads.

Oxford Street is one of the world’s busiest shopping areas, with around half a million visitors each day.

Khan said the changes come “just in time” for the Christmas shopping period.

“Following strong support from Londoners and businesses, I’m excited to see my bold vision for Oxford Street really coming to life next month as we start going traffic-free, just in time for the busy Christmas shopping period,” the mayor said.

“I encourage everyone to explore and enjoy our newly traffic-free Oxford Street, as we work to create a vibrant destination that welcomes Londoners and visitors alike.

“Revitalising Oxford Street will help to super-charge regeneration, boosting jobs and economic growth in the capital and beyond.”

He added the plans will help build a “greener, better, more prosperous London for everyone”.

But the deputy leader of Westminster City Council said Khan is “rushing preparations”.

Councillor Tim Barnes said: “While we finally now have a timetable for the proposed pedestrianisation, Westminster City Council, residents and businesses on Oxford Street still have a long list of unanswered questions about how it will work.

“If this is going to be the ‘greener, better and more prosperous’ success that the mayor has promised, then issues around access, air pollution, street cleaning and public safety, need answers urgently.

“Traffic will be pushed to the small streets nearby causing economic and environmental harm.”

Transport for London will work with the Oxford Street Development Corporation to clean and declutter the street and install new safety measures, with works beginning this week.

The pedestrianisation of this initial stretch forms the “first phase” of changes to Oxford Street, according to the mayor’s office.

The changes will be temporary so “real-time data” can be collected on how people use the space which will help inform the design of permanent improvements as part of plans to pedestrianise the rest of Oxford Street.

Two new public squares, more than 100 new seats, dining tables and over 50 new trees are expected to be in place by the end of spring next year.

Fast-fashion platform Shein has reported plunging profit and sliding European sales in its first ‌results as a public company, feeding investor worries over margin pressure and slowing growth.

Adjusted net profit was $US228 million ($A325 million) for the second quarter, down 67 per cent from a year ‌ago, and its margin was squeezed to just 2.1 per cent from 6.2 per cent last year as conflict in the Middle East pushed up jet fuel and freight costs for the retailer that sends cheap clothes by air to shoppers around the world.

Sales in Europe dropped sharply too in the quarter to end-June as Shein hiked prices and cut online advertising in anticipation of 3-euro ($A5) fees the European Union imposed on low-value e-commerce parcels starting July 1.

Shein reported $US11.08 billion in sales for the ‌second quarter, with Europe revenue ‌down 13.9 per cent to $US3.77 billion ⁠and US revenue falling 6.0 per cent to $US2.5 billion.

Overall sales were up 0.9 per cent from a year ago as growth ​in Latin America offset declines in Shein’s biggest markets.

Since its September 1 debut in Hong Kong, Shein’s shares have dropped 27.3 per cent from the offer price of $HK48.56 apiece, and the continued profit squeeze gave little to encourage investors.

“We estimate earnings landed more than 10 per cent below the low end of the range implied by the prospectus,” Jefferies analysts wrote.

Shein’s 18.1 per cent jump in fulfilment costs was well above Jefferies’ expectations and was concerning, they said, given this was already before the EU fees kicked in.

In ⁠a statement, Shein chief executive and chair Yangtian Xu said a key priority was increasing ‌the amount ​of inventory in Europe.

Shein has been investing in warehouse space in Poland, opening a logistics hub in Wroclaw with 740,000 square metres of warehouse space in ​December last year. ‌

Industrial real estate firm CTP said it has this year leased an additional 66,000 square metres of warehouse space to Shein in Poland.

Xu also said Shein plans to push into higher-priced clothes that will boost its profitability, and hinted at the company’s strategy of expanding its family of brands, including through acquisitions.

“As the product mix shifts towards brands at higher price points, the platform’s overall average selling price ​will ​rise accordingly,” he said in a statement. 

“Our vision is to become ​a richly diversified brand collection that meets consumers’ varied needs across multiple price points ‌and occasions.”

Shein was already forced to raise prices in the United States last year when the US administration ended de minimis – duty-free access for low-value ecommerce parcels – and this year faces the same challenge in the EU.

Shein has said the European fees could have a bigger effect than the end of de minimis in the US.

The 3-euro fees apply per product category, adding up to 15 euros if a shopper ​buys five different types of item in one order.

The EU is also planning an additional 2-euro handling fee on low-value ecommerce parcels, to be implemented ​from November 1, adding to the pressure ⁠on Shein’s business model.

Larissa Waters has quit as leader of the Greens due to worsening kidney disease.

The Queensland senator made the shock announcement late on Tuesday, saying her condition – which was not publicly known – had deteriorated.

“I’ve been managing kidney disease for some time but recently it’s taken a downturn,” Senator Waters posted on X.

“My prognosis is good, but doctors are clear that recovery needs a slower pace than leading a party allows.”

Senator Waters assumed the Greens’ leadership after former Melbourne MP Adam Bandt sensationally lost his seat at the May 2025 federal election.

In a statement, the Greens lauded her efforts to secure an overhaul of Australia’s environmental laws to reform native logging, land clearing and push back on fast-tracking coal and gas projects.

The party also helped Labor ram revamped gun laws through the Senate in the wake of the Bondi massacre, which include a planned national gun buyback.

More recently, Senator Waters’ party has pushed back hard on reforms aimed at drastically cutting NDIS spending, delaying the bill’s passage for months in order to extend an inquiry into the sweeping changes.

The party will begin the process of selecting a new leader in the coming days.

The outgoing leader has been a senator since 2011, save for a 14-month period where she was forced to resign because she held Canadian citizenship.

She will go on medical leave but will not quit the Senate.

“I’m really sad that illness means my time as leader has been cut short, but our movement needs a leader in good health to lead us to success,” Senator Waters said.

Previously unseen texts show A-lister Rebel Wilson was involved in creating a smear website that alleged her co-producer was a sex trafficker, a court has been told. 

The Pitch Perfect star directed, co-produced and starred in The Deb, a musical comedy that became the battleground for multiple legal battles in Australia and the US. 

She opted to dial in to the NSW Supreme Court on Monday for the second week of her spat with her co-producers Amanda Ghost, Gregor Cameron and Vince Holden. 

Wilson is accused of breaching contracts and consumer law when making allegedly defamatory statements about the trio online in July 2024, including accusing them of inappropriate conduct towards lead actor Charlotte MacInnes. 

Texts show Wilson was involved in drafting the content on a website that described Ms Ghost as an “Indian Ghislaine Maxwell” who “trades pleasure for protection”, the producers’ barrister claimed. 

Sue Chrysanthou SC said the messages were recently disclosed in the US litigation by Melissa Nathan, the boss of a crisis management firm allegedly engaged by Wilson. 

According to the texts read out in court, Ms Nathan informed the Bridesmaids star it would be $110,000 for an untraceable site, ghost server and hosting, and algorithmic push.

Wilson then asked if that was the total price and confirmed she had set up an account on the encrypted platform Signal, which Ms Nathan had suggested to discuss “sensitive information”, the texts state. 

The messages – including any discussions on Signal – had not been produced by Wilson and there had been no explanation as to why not, Ms Chrysanthou told the court. 

She said the messages showed the first-time director followed up with Ms Nathan to see whether she had received the website content because she had not been invoiced. 

Ms Nathan responded, saying it would be live soon, according to the texts. 

“We say this proves that they agreed from those first texts on August 5 that Ms Wilson would pay $110,000 for an untraceable website,” Ms Chrysanthou said. 

“On 6 August, Ms Wilson drafted the content of the website from Australia and sent it to Ms Nathan (who passed it on).” 

In her Federal Court proceedings earlier in 2026, the Hollywood star repeatedly denied engaging the firm or authoring the document that would form the basis for the smear website. 

She insisted her US lawyer had engaged the PR firm and said anyone could have used her company Camp Sugar’s name to draft the document. 

Ms Chrysanthou took issue with a previously undisclosed email in which Wilson allegedly recorded a complaint made to her by MacInnes about Ms Ghost. 

Wilson has alleged Ms MacInnes confided – and later retracted – that she felt uncomfortable because Ms Ghost had asked her to have a bath and a shower together. 

MacInnes has denied making a complaint, insisting she had not been uncomfortable when she and Ms Ghost shared a bath in their swimwear after the producer suffered a medical episode in September 2023.

“This is a file note about a very specific and serious allegation. Apparently,” Ms Chrysanthou said. 

“This document has never been seen or referred to before.”

She urged Justice Elisabeth Peden not to consider the email, which she said would be unfairly prejudicial to MacInnes and would require valuable court time to authenticate. 

“This email flies in the face of everything we know about this case,” Ms Chrysanthou said. 

“It makes no sense that it exists.”

Wilson’s barrister Dauid Sibtain SC pushed for the inclusion of the email, which he said an expert had determined was unaltered. 

A probe into Wilson’s email account was suggested before Justice Peden ultimately declined to accept the email.

Wilson will not give evidence in the NSW Supreme Court.

1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732)

National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028