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🗞️ Baby talk
If you've ever been caught asking your dog "who's the best boy in the whole world" in a voice you'd normally reserve for a baby, there's actual research explaining why.
Pick & Scroll News
August 12, 2026
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Good morning. If you've ever been caught asking your dog "who's the best boy in the whole world" in a voice you'd normally reserve for a baby, there's actual research explaining why.
It turns out we instinctively use the same warm, sing-songy tone for pets and babies, though with babies we also exaggerate our vowels to help them learn language, something we skip with dogs.
Parrots get something in between, where we give them slightly clearer pronunciation than dogs, because most of us get the sense they might actually repeat it back.
All the headlines and more below...
AMAZON LAUNCHES 4AM-8AM DELIVERY WINDOWS IN SYDNEY AND MELBOURNE
Amazon Australia now offers 4am-8am delivery to Prime members in Sydney and Melbourne who spend at least $49 and order by 10pm the night before. The overnight window is one of three free same-day delivery options, the fastest the company has offered in Australia.
The other two same-day windows are also available, though their timeframes were not specified.
The service is limited to Prime subscribers in the two cities. Amazon has not announced plans to extend it to other Australian cities.
AUSTRALIAN NEWS
The RBA has unanimously kept the cash rate unchanged at 4.35% for a second straight meeting as it weighs high inflation against slowing growth in housing, spending and jobs. LINK
Australian private hospitals and allied health providers warn that private health insurers are using aggressive audit practices to request patients' full clinical histories under broad data collection permissions. LINK
NSW and QLD are facing possible credit rating downgrades as a slumping housing market hits stamp duty and land tax revenues following federal tax changes and aggressive RBA rate rises. LINK
Australia’s hotel sector has remained resilient as national occupancy rose from 71.1% to 71.7% and average room rates increased 3.7% to $248.41 in the June 2026 half. AFR
ASIC warned that car insurers are failing to properly explain rising premiums and pricing methods, leaving loyal customers overpaying as car insurance attracts the most complaints. AFR
The NDIS Commission has issued its first lifetime bans under new integrity powers by revoking 40 linked providers and refusing 195 registrations. LINK
The Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman has reported that algorithm-driven digital platform disputes now comprise 48.3% of new cases, up from 12%, as small firms’ online shops are shut without warning. LINK
Australian mortgage borrowers are being urged to call their bank and threaten to refinance as nearly 50 smaller lenders offer variable rates under 6% and banks cut deals to retain customers. LINK
AUSTRALIA SETS $31.30 MINIMUM HOURLY RATE FOR GIG DELIVERY DRIVERS
The Fair Work Commission issued a minimum standards order covering food, drinks and groceries delivered through digital platforms, applying to all on-demand delivery platforms operating in Australia including Uber Eats, DoorDash and Menulog from 17 August. The order sets a $31.30 per hour pay floor and requires platforms to provide injury insurance while drivers are working.
Drivers were previously classified as independent contractors with no guaranteed minimum pay or injury cover.
The order imposes enforceable protections while keeping drivers classified as contractors rather than employees. Australia is among the first countries to impose binding minimum pay standards on gig platforms without reclassifying workers as employees.
Platforms must cover medical costs and income loss if a driver is injured while logged on and available for work, not only during active deliveries.
COMPANY NEWS
Metro Petroleum had several service stations raided in an Australian Federal Police illegal tobacco probe as illicit sales increasingly hit retailers. LINK
The Fair Work Commission has upheld NAB’s sacking of senior banker Steven Knowles, ruling his alleged 18-hour work days did not excuse repeated compliance failures. AFR
CBA has launched a $50 cashback offer for new Smart Access transaction accounts to attract customers as mortgage demand slows after 3 rate rises and tax changes. LINK
Spotify has said it will begin adding 'AI Persona' badges to some artist profiles from mid-September to give listeners more transparency about AI-generated personas. LINK
Uber Freight is investigating a data security incident involving unauthorised access to some systems as a spokesperson says operations remain unaffected and fully operational. LINK
Inghams has expanded lockdowns across all Australian poultry farms as the federal government allocates US$113M for wildlife vaccination and biosecurity against the spreading H5N1 threat. LINK
CBA reported a 7% rise in its full-year cash earnings, driven by robust home and business lending volumes and resilient credit quality. LINK
Avalon Airport signed a deal with Teleport to establish a dedicated air freight hub for Temu and Shein imports, speeding e-commerce deliveries and lowering export freight costs. AFR
Macquarie Cloud Services signed a 3-year agreement to on-sell Microsoft Azure, with US$278M in expected payments, in one of the region’s largest data centre optimisation deals. LINK
Nvidia has launched the lightweight open-source Nemotron 3.5 Lightning AI model for customisable, low-cost agent tasks as it develops a larger model to rival Chinese leaders. LINK
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ONE MORE SCROLL
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TRIVIA
It's full winter mode for a lot of Australia this week. Can you match each Australian state with the lowest temperature they have ever recorded:
−23.0 °C
−14.2 °C
−11.7 °C
−10.6 °C
−8.2 °C
−7.2 °C
Answers below
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ANSWERS
NSW −23.0 °C
Tasmania −14.2 °C
Victoria −11.7 °C
Queensland −10.6 °C
South Australia −8.2 °C
Western Australia −7.2 °C
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