Brisbane news live: Talking to AI maps could help solve housing crisis; Highway reopens early; PM meets Pope Leo XIV
Pinned post from 7.45am
Hopes talking to AI maps can help provide lifeline for housing crisis
By
Researchers hope talking to maps may help them find the answers needed to solve Australia's housing crisis.
In an effort to tackle a multi-front crisis, a cutting-edge government-backed housing analytics lab will open this morning.
Studying housing data, the interactive lab aims to find solutions to housing affordability, by looking at areas to build social homes and boost the waning development pipeline.
Researchers will use Map AI, an interactive tool that shows housing data, to find which areas are best to be developed, and how to feasibly redevelop already high-density areas.
'Map AI allows you to talk to your map and ask questions like 'show me property here', so it makes it a lot easier for those who are not data scientists to interrogate the data,' lead of the lab and UNSW professor Chris Pettit said.
'Traditionally planners try to rezone high-density areas around train stations.
'We will use AI to see what value are those properties are and what is permissible to zone, to break down some of those barriers.'
The lab will bring together more than a dozen partners in government and the housing sector, with a focus on NSW, though solutions found can be used across the nation.
State governments in 2023 agreed to begin building a combined 1.2 million homes from mid-2024, with the hope of finishing them over five years.
Less than a year later, the number of approved dwellings is dropping, not rising, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
7.22am
Weather for the week
A sunnier start to the week is forecast for the River City, after a week of intermittent showers.
The bureau suggests the chance of rain in Brisbane isn't high today, but showers will hang around this week.
The top temperatures will remain in the mid-20s degrees for the week.
Here's a glance at the next seven days:
7.21am
While you were sleeping
Here's what's making news further afield this morning:
Former US President Joe Biden has been diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer that has spread to his bones.
The faithful came in their thousands to see Pope Leo XIV begin his work as one of the world's most powerful spiritual leaders, in a ceremony that combined ancient symbols and modern statecraft.
'Relentless'. That's how family law mediator Jasmin Newman describes the vendetta against her by self-styled child recovery expert Adam Whittington, who came to the public's notice in 2016 when he was involved in 60 Minutes' bungled attempt to extricate Australian children from Lebanon.
A Mexican navy sailing ship on a global goodwill tour struck the Brooklyn Bridge in New York, snapping its three masts and fatally injuring two crew members.
With a $200 million price tag, a grand Sydney mansion is on track to become Australia's priciest property.
As Sussan Ley and Ted O'Brien begin rebuilding a shattered Liberal Party, the right lessons must be learnt from its devastating election loss – with some difficult discussions needed.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Sydney Morning Herald
7 minutes ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Albanese dismisses Hamas propaganda applauding recognition
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has urged media outlets not to promote propaganda from Hamas as he argued the listed terror group was increasingly isolated and desperate to maintain the appearance of relevance. A statement on a Telegram channel in Hamas' name on Thursday disavowed comments reported in this masthead on Wednesday, quoting senior Hamas official Hassan Yousef applauding Australia for committing to recognise a Palestinian state. 'The Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) denies the issuance of any statement by Sheikh Hassan Yousef, detained in occupation jails since October 19, 2023, on the Australian position regarding the recognition of the Palestinian state,' reads the new statement. 'Hamas affirms that Sheikh Hassan is held in poor detention conditions, cut off from the outside world, and has no means of communication with any local or international press outlets.' The original comments were provided to this masthead on Tuesday by Yousef's political office in Beitunia, a town near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, which issues statements on his behalf. Contacted on Thursday, a spokesperson for the office confirmed it had released the statement and that Youssef was still in jail, but said he was expected to be released soon. 'Hamas do not want a two-state solution,' Albanese told reporters at a press conference in Moreton Bay, Queensland. 'What they want is one state and I notice in the statement that's made today, they say that the alleged statement from the person yesterday [came from] someone who's been in prison in Israel since October 2023, and has no means of communication. 'What that should be is a warning to the media of being very careful about the fact that Hamas will engage in propaganda because what is happening is the international community are united about isolating Hamas, about supporting a peaceful way forward.'
The Age
7 minutes ago
- The Age
Albanese dismisses Hamas propaganda applauding recognition
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has urged media outlets not to promote propaganda from Hamas as he argued the listed terror group was increasingly isolated and desperate to maintain the appearance of relevance. A statement on a Telegram channel in Hamas' name on Thursday disavowed comments reported in this masthead on Wednesday, quoting senior Hamas official Hassan Yousef applauding Australia for committing to recognise a Palestinian state. 'The Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) denies the issuance of any statement by Sheikh Hassan Yousef, detained in occupation jails since October 19, 2023, on the Australian position regarding the recognition of the Palestinian state,' reads the new statement. 'Hamas affirms that Sheikh Hassan is held in poor detention conditions, cut off from the outside world, and has no means of communication with any local or international press outlets.' The original comments were provided to this masthead on Tuesday by Yousef's political office in Beitunia, a town near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, which issues statements on his behalf. Contacted on Thursday, a spokesperson for the office confirmed it had released the statement and that Youssef was still in jail, but said he was expected to be released soon. 'Hamas do not want a two-state solution,' Albanese told reporters at a press conference in Moreton Bay, Queensland. 'What they want is one state and I notice in the statement that's made today, they say that the alleged statement from the person yesterday [came from] someone who's been in prison in Israel since October 2023, and has no means of communication. 'What that should be is a warning to the media of being very careful about the fact that Hamas will engage in propaganda because what is happening is the international community are united about isolating Hamas, about supporting a peaceful way forward.'
AU Financial Review
37 minutes ago
- AU Financial Review
Australia's nuclear paradox
Let's start with the facts: Australia holds roughly one-third of the world's known uranium reserves. We are a top-three global exporter. Yet we've barred ourselves from using our own resources domestically, a political compromise established in the 1990s. In doing so, we've created a paradox: we help power nuclear reactors around the world, while refusing to consider the same path at home. Elsewhere, nuclear energy is undergoing a global reappraisal. In the United States, both major parties are backing uranium-supply expansion. Trump's advocacy has seen nuclear emerge as a key strategic pillar – part of a broader push for American energy independence and technological dominance. With the US still heavily reliant on imported uranium, the demand for secure, domestic sources is accelerating. This makes the current moment a breakout opportunity for exploration-stage companies operating in North America. Global Uranium and Enrichment (ASX: GUE) is one such company. We're focused on high-quality uranium projects across key US jurisdictions, including our flagship Pine Ridge Uranium Project in the Powder River Basin, Wyoming and the Tallahassee Uranium Project in Colorado. These assets are well positioned to benefit from the groundswell of bipartisan support for new domestic supply, advanced permitting frameworks and increasing market appetite for geopolitical security in the energy transition. And with the massive power demands coming from AI data centres, the need for energy is rapidly increasing. Uranium spot prices have more than doubled over the past four years, reaching multi-year highs in 2024. We expect further upside, driven by renewed utility contracting and strategic stockpiling by governments. While the momentum is global, Australia's absence from the discussion is glaring. The cost isn't just economic. It's technological, environmental and strategic. The opportunity cost of inaction includes lost GDP, missed infrastructure investment, and the offshoring of skills and intellectual property that Australia helped develop. We risk watching a generation of engineers, scientists and investors build the future overseas, because they aren't permitted to build it here. Nuclear may not solve the net zero challenge alone, but it deserves honest consideration alongside solar, wind, hydro and storage. China is doing this well, building out nuclear power in tandem with solar. Globally, companies are responding with innovation. Earlier this month, global uranium-enrichment company Urenco announced a significant investment in Ubaryon (in which GUE is the largest shareholder), a private Australian company developing next-generation enrichment technology. This investment is a positive step in the commercialisation of Ubaryon's cheaper and cleaner chemical-enrichment methods. Of course, nuclear remains politically fraught, but we should be clear-eyed. Decisions made now will shape Australia's energy, technology and investment landscape for decades. There's still time to catch up, but the window is closing and it's time to have a serious conversation about our resistance against nuclear energy. What is the immediate dollar cost we are reacting to in comparison to the future opportunity cost? We must move beyond outdated taboos, because if we don't act now, in 10 years we'll be explaining why we chose to sit on the sidelines.
