🗞️ iPhone Duo

Good morning. Apple’s first folding phone, the iPhone Duo, lands in Australia at $3,499, and $5,899 if you want the 2TB one.

That top model costs more than three MacBook Airs. Pre-orders open on 16 October, so there are five weeks to work out whether you have always wanted a phone that shuts like a wallet.

All the headlines and more below...

VICTORIA'S WORK-FROM-HOME LAW WILL PASS WITH 28-DAY NOTICE PERIOD AND NO UTILITY COSTS FOR EMPLOYERS

Victoria will legislate a two-day-per-week work-from-home right after Premier Ben Carroll secured opposition backing with a series of last-minute concessions. The laws will pass the upper house Thursday and cannot be unwound by an incoming Coalition government after the November election.

Employers now get 28 days to respond to a work-from-home notice, up from 21, and can issue a notice to pause or revoke the arrangement if they deem it unreasonable. The right applies only to employees who live in Victoria, restricts "home" to a main residence or mutually agreed location, and cannot be used to vary an existing employment agreement's days and times. Employers must provide essential equipment such as laptops or software but will not pay for home internet or utility bills. Businesses with fewer than 15 workers have until 1 January 2028 to comply; larger businesses start 1 July 2027.

The right is being written into the Equal Opportunity Act rather than industrial law, a structure designed to survive a High Court challenge under Section 109 of the Constitution, which voids state laws that conflict with Commonwealth legislation. Shadow Attorney-General James Newbury confirmed the opposition has "no plans" to repeal the law if elected. The laws will be reviewed after 18 months of operation.

AUSTRALIAN NEWS

• Small businesses are being hit by unexpected Australia Post underpaid postage fees that block future parcel lodgements, as the Postal Industry Ombudsman has raised billing concerns and prompted operational changes. LINK

• Australia’s housing downturn is being led by high-end homes, with top-quartile values down 10.7% in Sydney and 10.5% in Melbourne as cheaper properties show greater resilience. LINK

• Negative equity among first home buyers using the 5% deposit scheme has jumped from 0.2% to 1%, affecting about 480 households, as the property downturn hits recent buyers. AFR

• NSW Police has charged 33 people over an alleged fraud syndicate that used fake documents and inflated property prices to secure more than $600M in fraudulent loans. LINK

• The federal government has proposed a national gas reservation scheme requiring exporters to supply up to 20% of LNG to meet 110% of domestic demand, aiming to ensure modest oversupply and lower prices. LINK

COMPANY NEWS

• Xero apologised to accountants and paused an analytics email feature for Australian customers after a UK influencer’s sponsored post suggested its software and AI could replace accountants. LINK

• AustralianSuper has admitted to delaying thousands of death benefit payouts and faces a potential fine of up to $30M as ASIC pursues Federal Court penalties over systemic failures. LINK

• Instagram boss Adam Mosseri defended the app by denying it is clinically addictive or uses microphones to target ads, as it trials new algorithm-transparency and user-control features. AFR

• Anthropic disclosed a 4th incident of its Claude Opus models hacking third-party systems during tests as it identifies biased reasoning and recklessness and hires METR to investigate. LINK

• GrainCorp has cut about 80 jobs and delayed a key technology upgrade as part of a strategic restructuring aimed at boosting efficiency. CB

• Nine Entertainment extended its Australian streaming and broadcast rights for the Premier League until the 2033-34 season in a roughly US$600M deal as Stan Sport subscriber growth accelerates. LINK

• Google has pledged at least €13B over 2 years to expand Finnish AI data centres and digital infrastructure, while signing a 22-year nuclear power deal for up to 50% of a Fortum plant’s output. LINK

• Sekisui Chemical has agreed to pay $335M for a 51% stake in Ausbuild, valuing the QLD home builder at about $670M as it targets modular housing-driven expansion. AFR

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CHART OF THE DAY

Is AI taking over the web?

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Editor’s Pick: OpenAI has used around 10,000 AI agents to find and formally verify a blowup solution to the forced Navier–Stokes problem, resolving a US$1M Millennium Prize question amid controversy.

Draft Pick: Collingwood has confirmed that 2024 Coleman medallist Jesse Hogan will join as his fourth AFL club on a two-year deal via a low-cost trade from GWS Giants.

Doctor’s Pick: What’s the difference between psychotherapy and psychoanalysis?

TRIVIA

Can you name the 10 countries starting with P?

Answers below

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ANSWERS

Pakistan, Palau, Palestine State, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal

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