WiseTech Global appoints insider Zubin Appoo as permanent CEO
The company's co-founder and long-serving chief executive, Richard White, stepped down last October, following media reports of allegations about his personal life.
Cartledge, who was the chief financial officer, was appointed interim CEO following White's exit.
Appoo has been with WiseTech for about 15 years, most recently as chief of staff and deputy chief innovation officer, a role he was appointed to in April.
His appointment as CEO is effective immediately, and Cartledge will remain with the company till his retirement at the end of calendar 2025, the company said.
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The Guardian
4 hours ago
- The Guardian
Australia shouldn't fear the AI revolution – new skills can create more and better jobs
It seems a lifetime ago, but it was 2017 when the former NBN CEO Mike Quigley and I wrote a book about the impact of technology on our labour market. Changing Jobs: The Fair Go in the New Machine Age was our attempt to make sense of rapid technological change and its implications for Australian workers. It sprang from a thinkers' circle Andrew Charlton and I convened regularly back then, to consider the biggest, most consequential shifts in our economy. Flicking through the book now makes it very clear that the pace of change since then has been breathtaking. The stories of Australian tech companies give a sense of its scale. In 2017, the cloud design pioneer Canva was valued at $US1bn – today, it's more than $US30bn. Leading datacentre company AirTrunk was opening its first two centres in Sydney and Melbourne. It now has almost a dozen across Asia-Pacific and is backed by one of the world's biggest investors. We understand a churning and changing world is a source of opportunity but also anxiety for Australians. While the technology has changed, our goal as leaders remains the same. The responsibility we embrace is to make Australian workers, businesses and investors beneficiaries, not victims, of that change. That matters more than ever in a new world of artificial intelligence. Breakthroughs in 'large language models' (LLMs) – computer programs trained on massive datasets that can understand and respond in human languages – have triggered a booming AI 'hype cycle' and are driving a 'cognitive industrial revolution'. ChatGPT became a household name in a matter of months and has reframed how we think about working, creating and problem-solving. LLMs have been adopted seven times faster than the internet and 20 times faster than electricity. The rapid take-up has driven the biggest rise in the S&P 500 since the late 1990s. According to one US estimate, eight out of 10 workers could use LLMs for at least 10% of their work in future. Yet businesses are still in the discovery phase, trying to separate hype from reality and determine what AI to build, buy or borrow. Artificial intelligence will completely transform our economy. Every aspect of life will be affected. I'm optimistic that AI will be a force for good, but realistic about the risks. The Nobel prize-winning economist Darren Acemoglu estimates that AI could boost productivity by 0.7% over the next decade, but some private sector estimates are up to 30 times higher. Goldman Sachs expects AI could drive gross domestic product (GDP) growth up 7% over the next 10 years, and PwC estimates it could bump up global GDP by $15.7tn by 2030. The wide variation in estimates is partly due to different views on how long it will take to integrate AI into business workflows deeply enough to transform the market size or cost base of industries. But if some of the predictions prove correct, AI may be the most transformative technology in human history. At its best, it will convert energy into analysis, and more productivity into higher living standards. It's expected to have at least two significant economy-wide effects. First, it reduces the cost of information processing. One example of this is how eBay's AI translation tools have removed language barriers to drive international sales. The increase in cross-border trade is the equivalent of having buyers and sellers 26% closer to one another – effectively shrinking the distance between Australia and global markets. This is one reason why the World Trade Organization forecasts AI will lower trade costs and boost trade volumes by up to 13%. Second, cheaper analysis accelerates and increases our problem-solving capacity, which can, in turn, speed up innovation by reducing research and development (R&D) costs and skills bottlenecks. By making more projects stack up commercially, AI is likely to raise investment, boost GDP and generate demand for human expertise. Despite the potential for AI to create more high-skilled, high-wage jobs, some are concerned that adoption will lead to big increases in unemployment. The impact of AI on the labour force is uncertain, but there are good reasons to be optimistic. One study finds that more than half of the use cases of LLMs involve workers iterating back and forth with the technology, augmenting workers' skills in ways that enable them to achieve more. Another recent study found that current LLMs often automate only some tasks within roles, freeing up employees to add more value rather than reducing hours worked. These are some of the reasons many expect the AI transformation to enhance skills and change the nature of work, rather than causing widespread or long-term structural unemployment. Even so, the impact of AI on the nature of work is expected to be substantial. We've seen this play out before – more than half the jobs people do today are in occupations that didn't even exist at the start of the second world war. Some economists have suggested AI could increase occupational polarisation – driving a U-shaped increase in demand for manual roles that are harder to automate and high-skill roles that leverage technology, but a reduction in demand for medium-skilled tasks. But workers in many of these occupations may be able to leverage AI to complete more specialised tasks and take on more productive, higher-paying roles. In this transition, the middle has the most to gain and the most at stake. There is also a risk that AI could increase short-term unemployment if investment in skills does not keep up with the changing nature of work. Governments have an important role to play here, and a big motivation for our record investment in education is ensuring that skills keep pace with technological change. But it's also up to business, unions and the broader community to ensure we continue to build the human capital and skills we need to grasp this opportunity. To be optimistic about AI is not to dismiss the risks, which are not limited to the labour market. The ability of AI to rapidly collate, create and disseminate information and disinformation makes people more vulnerable to fraud and poses a risk to democracies. AI technologies are also drastically reducing the cost of surveillance and increasing its effectiveness, with implications for privacy, autonomy at work and, in some cases, personal security. There are questions of ethics, of inequality, of bias in algorithms, and legal responsibility for decision-making when AI is involved. These new technologies will also put pressure on resources such as energy, land, water and telecoms infrastructure, with implications for carbon emissions. But we are well placed to manage the risks and maximise the opportunities. In 2020, Australia was ranked sixth in the world in terms of AI companies and research institutions when accounting for GDP. Our industrial opportunities are vast and varied – from developing AI software to using AI to unlock value in traditional industries. Markets for AI hardware – particularly chips – and foundational models are quite concentrated. About 70% of the widely used foundational models have been developed in the US, and three US firms claim 65% of the global cloud computing market. But further downstream, markets for AI software and services are dynamic, fragmented and more competitive. The Productivity Commission sees potential to develop areas of comparative advantage in these markets. Infrastructure is an obvious place to start. According to the International Data Corporation, global investment in AI infrastructure increased 97% in the first half of 2024 to $US47bn and is on its way to $US200bn by 2028. We are among the top five global destinations for datacentres and a world leader in quantum computing. Our landmass, renewable energy potential and trusted international partnerships make us an attractive destination for data processing. Our substantial agenda, from the capacity investment scheme to the Future Made in Australia plan, will be key to this. They are good examples of our strategy to engage and invest, not protect and retreat. Our intention is to regulate as much as necessary to protect Australians, but as little as possible to encourage innovation. There is much work already under way: our investment in quantum computing company PsiQuantum and AI adopt centres, development of Australia's first voluntary AI safety standard, putting AI on the critical technologies list, a national capability plan, and work on R&D. Next steps will build on the work of colleagues like the assistant minister for the digital economy, Andrew Charlton, the science minister, Tim Ayres and former science minister Ed Husic, and focus on at least five things: Building confidence in AI to accelerate development and adoption in key sectors. Investing in and encouraging up skilling and reskilling to support our workforce. Helping to attract, streamline, speed up and coordinate investment in data infrastructure that's in the national interest, in ways that are cost effective, sustainable and make the most of our advantages. Promoting fair competition in global markets and building demand and capability locally to secure our influence in AI supply chains. And working with the finance minister, Katy Gallagher, to deliver safer and better public services using AI. Artificial intelligence will be a key concern of the economic reform roundtable I'm convening this month because it has major implications for economic resilience, productivity and budget sustainability. I'm setting these thoughts out now to explain what we'll grapple with and how. AI is contentious, and of course, there is a wide spectrum of views, but we are ambitious and optimistic. We can deploy AI in a way consistent with our values if we treat it as an enabler, not an enemy, by listening to and training workers to adapt and augment their work. Because empowering people to use AI well is not just a matter of decency or a choice between prosperity and fairness; it is the only way to get the best out of people and technology at the same time. It is not beyond us to chart a responsible middle course on AI, which maximises the benefits and manages the risks. Not by letting it rip, and not by turning back the clock and pretending none of this is happening, but by turning algorithms into opportunities for more Australians to be beneficiaries, not victims of a rapid transformation that is gathering pace. Jim Chalmers is the federal treasurer
The Guardian
4 hours ago
- The Guardian
Sportsbet advertises multi bets on AFL website after pulling TV ads due to ‘community sentiment'
Gambling giant Sportsbet has splashed ads for its expanded same-game multi bets on the AFL's website, months after pulling them from free-to-air broadcasts due to 'strong community sentiment'. The ads, which reveal Sportsbet now accepts same-game multi bets on how many possessions a player acquires during a match, encouraged people to 'bet now' and surrounded the AFL homepage. While the ads did not breach any rules, Sportsbet has previously voluntarily withdrawn ads for the same product on different platforms 'after listening to stakeholder and community sentiment on gambling advertising'. 'Same-game multis' allow gambling on a combination of outcomes such as possessions and goal scorers, and all must succeed for the bet to be paid out. Analysis has shown that multi-bets have a high fail rate for gamblers. Sign up: AU Breaking News email Crossbench MP Kate Chaney, who sat on a parliamentary inquiry into gambling harm led by the late Labor MP Peta Murphy, said the ad showed why the gambling industry's attempts to self-regulate had failed. 'Expecting gambling companies to take their own hand out of the cookie jar is a joke and the government must know it,' Chaney said. In early July, weeks before the ad was published, the communications minister Annika Wells met the AFL's chief executive, Andrew Dillon, to discuss the government's long-awaited plan to restrict gambling advertising. The former communications minister Michelle Rowland's proposed changes, made in response to June 2023 parliamentary inquiry, were abandoned shortly before the election. The inquiry recommended a total ban on gambling advertising after a three-year transition period. ACT independent senator David Pocock urged the federal government to fast-track its reforms and said the industry could not be trusted to regulate itself. 'Sportsbet response to concern over recent advertising highlights this, after they pulled advertisements from TV only to then splash them over the AFL's website,' Pocock said. Prof Samantha Thomas, a Deakin University academic who specialises in gambling and who gave evidence to the inquiry, said the ad was 'a clear example of why comprehensive bans are needed'. 'Partial restrictions will continue to leave the door open for the gambling industry to promote their products across multiple platforms,' Thomas said. The Alliance for Gambling Reform's chief executive, Martin Thomas, accused Sportsbet of 'virtue signalling' by removing its ads from television and then 'resorting back to type' by splashing them on the AFL's website. Sportsbet and the AFL were contacted for comment. Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion Unlike television broadcasts, the ad was only visible to people aged 18 or older. Anyone who visits the AFL website can also opt out of seeing gambling odds and wagering content. Earlier this year, Guardian Australia reported on leaked documents showing the AFL received a bigger share of gambling revenue when people submitted same-game multi bets. Shortly before the season began, the AFL sought an even bigger share of revenue from these bets, arguing the money was necessary to address an 'unprecedented' increase in 'integrity risks' posed by the wagering industry. That proposal was not accepted by some bookmakers and the Victorian gambling regulator is considering whether to make an unprecedented intervention in the dispute, which could set a limit on the league's revenue from wagering. In recent weeks, Wells has also discussed proposed gambling ad restrictions with NRL chair Peter V'landys and chief executive Andrew Abdo, Seven West Media's chief executive, Jeff Howard, and the chief executives of Free TV Australia and Foxtel. Before those meetings, Wells met Rod Glover, who was Peta Murphy's husband for more than 20 years before she died from cancer in December 2023, six months after delivering her report into gambling harms. So far, sources familiar with the consultation say it has focused on identifying the main objections and testing support for compromises. They say the government intends to act by the end of the year. In Australia, Gambling Help Online is available on 1800 858 858. The National Debt Helpline is at 1800 007 007. In the UK, support for problem gambling can be found via the NHS National Problem Gambling Clinic on 020 7381 7722, or GamCare on 0808 8020 133. In the US, call the National Council on Problem Gambling at 800-GAMBLER or text 800GAM.
Telegraph
13 hours ago
- Telegraph
How Spain's wealth tax became an unexpected boon for Britain
Amancio Ortega, Spain's richest man, is not a household name on Teesside. But the billionaire entrepreneur, best known for founding Zara, now looms large over the area. The 89-year-old's €110bn (£95bn) family office, Pontegadea Inversiones, last week snapped up a 49pc stake in PD Ports, paying an undisclosed sum to Canadian investment giant Brookfield for the shares. PD operates major ports at Tees and Hartlepool. The Spaniard already has a property portfolio in Britain worth £2.5bn, but until now he has mostly stuck to hotels, shops and offices. The PD Ports deal is his first major British foray into infrastructure and logistics. Ortega's family office insists the investment is simply about good business. But observers note that the push into ports could have an advantageous side effect: lowering the billionaire's wealth tax bill. Spain's notorious wealth tax was first introduced in 1977 as an 'emergency' measure, and was reintroduced in 2011 after a three-year hiatus as a 'temporary' measure. It takes an annual slice of between 0.2pc and 3.5pc of the value of every Spanish resident's worldwide assets. The rules say that a Spaniard's combined tax bill on wealth and income should not exceed 60pc of their taxable income. That shifts the tax net away from the asset-rich-cash-poor, old-money crowd and more towards the high-earning end of the wealth spectrum – where Ortega stands out. Ortega's personal fortune, which Forbes estimates at almost $115bn (£86bn), largely derives from his 59pc shareholding in his company Inditex, which owns the Zara brand he founded 50 years ago. After leaving school at 14, he began working for a clothes shop in Galicia and started his first rag-trade business in the early 1960s. However, it is not just a paper fortune: he also regularly receives billions in dividends, a form of income, from his empire. This year, his dividend bonanza will top €3bn for the first time thanks to his stake in Inditex, which is held via two of Pontegadea's three subsidiary companies. He tends to reinvest almost all of this in buying properties and companies. Most of Ortega's British investments are in scope of Spain's wealth tax. However, the rules say that if a rich Spaniard has a stake worth more than 5pc in a productive or trading business (which does not include real estate), that won't count towards his or her taxable wealth. PD Ports is exactly this kind of investment. Sources close to Pontegadea say most of the family office's assets would still get caught in the wealth tax net. They say it is standard practice to redeploy the dividends and other income into economically productive assets. Still, Pontegadea has been visibly broadening its portfolio away from purely property in recent years, taking the kind of 5pc-plus stakes in energy and infrastructure companies that, if structured in certain ways, could qualify for that wealth tax exemption. Sources said some of these investments might qualify the exemption and lower the wealth tax liability. But they said this was not the motivation for the choice of assets, nor the timing of deals. Ortega's strategic shift has mostly been aimed at energy. In 2023, the year after a reform that tightened the wealth tax net, Pontegadea pumped a reported €693m into energy projects, more than twice the amount of the year before. In the past five years his family office has acquired 5pc stakes in both electricity major Redeia and gas grid operator Enagas. Among its dozen-plus energy investments, it also owns 12pc of Portuguese electricity and gas system operator Ren, and has stakes in several solar and wind farms in Spain and France. Beyond energy, in 2022 Pontegadea bought a one-third stake in telecoms provider Telxius, and last December it took a 20pc chunk of Dutch parking operator Q-Park. The 49pc stake in PD Ports looks to be one of Ortega's largest ownership positions, putting Britain at the centre of Pontegadea's diversification strategy. The investment highlights how Britain is benefiting from a deal-making spree overseen by Spain's richest man. It could also be read as a sign of the distorting effects of a wealth tax, which critics say can often do more harm than good. 'I don't think this tax collects a lot of revenue,' says Christopher McCann, a Spain-based senior partner at financial advisers Blevins Franks. Calls for UK wealth tax It comes as Rachel Reeves comes under pressure to consider just such a wealth tax for Britain to help fill a multibillion-pound hole in the budget. Lord Kinnock, the former Labour leader, has called for a 2pc tax on assets over £10m and the party's union backers have also spoken out in favour of the idea. Anneliese Dodds, a former shadow chancellor, last week also urged Sir Keir Starmer and Reeves to look at 'how it would be possible' to impose a levy on the assets of the richest Britons. On Friday, Dame Diana Johnson, the policing minister, said on Friday it was important 'all these issues are looked at and discussed and we look at the evidence about what will work and what won't work'. Despite the growing calls, senior ministers have downplayed talks of a wealth tax amid concerns it would hasten the stampede of wealthy leaving Britain after the abolition of non-dom status. Depending on the structure of any regime, it could also put off investors like Ortega. The businessman is a little-known but significant presence in the British property sector. His flagship is the imposing neoclassical Adelphi building on Victoria Embankment in central London, which he bought for a reported €680m. Pontegadea's other London assets include the 1920s commercial edifice Devonshire House, opposite the Ritz on Piccadilly; the roof-gardened Post Building in Bloomsbury; and a former BBC office near Oxford Circus. In Companies House filings, Pontegadea valued its British portfolio at £2.4bn in March 2024, yielding rental income of £98m. His worldwide real estate empire, worth a reported €20bn, spans Spain, Portugal, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Ireland, Britain, Canada and the United States. Ortega is a landlord to the likes of Amazon, Walmart and Primark. Although Pontegadea denies the wealth tax has played the driving role in Ortega's shift from pure property into energy and infrastructure, advisers say the tax figures are large in the financial planning of even moderately wealthy Spanish residents. 'If you have investment income, then by using the right structures you can squeeze down your taxable income, and you can reduce your wealth tax liability,' McCann says. 'It is possible to live here and pay a more reasonable level of tax just by good planning.' Whatever the motivation behind Ortega's PD Ports play, you can be sure he has plenty of good financial planning.
