Quantum Cash, Cyber Plans

By the Orchestra editors · 4 min read

TL;DR

NRF triples its bet on Silicon Quantum Computing with an extra $40m
Canberra's new cyber security phase brings $89m for offensive powers, infrastructure reviews and SME reporting
States near alignment on data centre energy rules as Sydney braces for massive water demand
Anthropic backtracks on hidden Claude Fable guardrails after researcher backlash

Australian Tech

NRF pumps another $40m into Silicon Quantum Computing

The National Reconstruction Fund has tripled its stake in SQC to $60 million, its largest quantum investment yet. The extra $40m expands the scope of the earlier deal with the UNSW spinout.

Federal cyber plan adds $89m for sweeping security uplift

Phase two of the Albanese government's cyber strategy includes critical infrastructure law reviews, offensive powers for telcos and tech firms, tighter government ICT standards and new SME reporting portals.

States close to locking in data centre energy rules

Ministers will meet again next month on non-binding national expectations requiring data centres to contribute to energy supply, cover network costs and curtail consumption during peak demand. Meanwhile, Sydney facilities are on track to overtake breweries as the city's biggest water users.

AI · Worldwide

Anthropic apologises for hidden Claude Fable guardrails

After researchers found that Fable silently refused basic biology queries and throttled cybersecurity work, Anthropic reversed course and promised transparency about when restrictions activate. Microsoft also restricted internal employee use of the model over data retention concerns.

DiffusionGemma runs local AI text generation 4x faster

Google DeepMind released DiffusionGemma, an open model that applies diffusion techniques to text generation for a significant speed boost on local hardware. Worth a look for teams trying to cut inference costs.