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🗞️ Inside job
During a routine security test, AI agents from OpenAI and Anthropic went beyond what they were told to do, with one writing malicious code and creating fake online identities to try to trick a human into approving it.
Sophie Ng & Pick & Scroll News
August 06, 2026
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Good morning. During a routine security test, AI agents from OpenAI and Anthropic went beyond what they were told to do, with one writing malicious code and creating fake online identities to try to trick a human into approving it.
Out of 122 test runs, evaluators counted 19 unsanctioned actions, 17 of them from Anthropic's agent.
No real-world harm came of it (yet), but it's a good look into the future of work.
All the headlines and more below...
SYDNEY OFFICE VACANCY FALLS TO 13.3% AS BIG FIRMS LEASE MORE SPACE THAN A YEAR AGO
Large firms locked in more space in the 6 months to January 2026 than they did in the same period a year earlier, driving Sydney's office vacancy down from 13.8% to 13.3%. Melbourne's office vacancy sits at 18.9%, still at historically high levels, but leasing demand there is running higher than most other capitals except Brisbane and Perth.
Remote-work momentum may be slowing as companies take advantage of lower rents to move into better-quality towers. The Property Council says the market has moved from correction to recovery, though it remains a story of quality and location - major occupiers are targeting the best buildings, not just any available space.
Melbourne's vacancy rate remains elevated as a legacy of sharp pandemic lockdowns. Brisbane and Perth are the only two cities showing stronger leasing activity.
AUSTRALIAN NEWS
The ACCC has launched a 12‑month inquiry into declaring wholesale mobile services and mandated domestic roaming, which Telstra opposes as Starlink rapidly expands its rival satellite network. LINK
Australia’s 5% deposit first home buyer scheme has enabled nearly 1,500 purchased properties to be converted into investments as hundreds of borrowers earning over $300,000 use the program. LINK
AI adoption could lift Australia’s GDP by 2.6% to 3.2% over the next decade and create a net gain of 44,000 jobs. LINK
Britain's AI Security Institute has revealed that Anthropic’s Mythos 5 and OpenAI’s GPT 5.6 Sol deceptively hacked third-party software and emailed people to steal credentials during a cyber evaluation. LINK
WESTPAC DEPLOYS AI BOTS TO ASSESS MORTGAGE AND CREDIT CARD APPLICATIONS
Thousands of Westpac bankers are now using AI bots to assess mortgage and credit card applications. The agents saved 12,500 banker hours in their first month of operation in July, annualised at 150,000 hours.
AI use in big banks is shifting from low-value productivity tools to more complex, high-value applications like agentic AI.
Westpac is ranked 45th globally for AI adoption by Evident Insights. Commonwealth Bank sits 4th. NAB is 34th, ANZ is 37th. The bank is pushing to demonstrate return on investment from its surging spending on artificial intelligence and close the gap with Commonwealth Bank.
COMPANY NEWS
AustralianSuper announced its first administration fee rise since 2022 for 3.6 million members, lifting accumulation fees from 0.10% to 0.12% and raising the annual cap from $350 to $600. LINK
KPMG Australia has engaged Corrs Chambers Westgarth to independently advise former partners involved in its whistleblower scandal as they prepare for parliamentary inquiry hearings on 14 August. LINK
Long-haul pilots at Qantas have voted with 76% to 88% support for 11 types of protected industrial action after rejecting an offer with a 2-year wage freeze. LINK
Endeavour Group reported FY26 group sales of $12.2B up 1.3% but expects underlying profit to drop 14.8% to $363M after writedowns to wineries and vineyards . LINK
Amazon has launched its new LLM-powered chatbot Alexa+ in Australia, saying it should reduce basic errors and falsehoods as 98% of local Echo devices receive the upgrade. LINK
Meta reported an 8% fall in June-quarter operating income to US$18.8B as a US$2.4B legal charge and severance costs weighed on results and FY24 expenses. LINK
DoorDash increased its forecast for Q3 marketplace gross order value as convenience-focused consumers drive strong delivery demand. LINK
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ONE MORE SCROLL
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