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🗞️ Touching grass
The next time your train or bus hits a reception black spot, you might finally look up from your doomscroll and remember that the real world exists outside of your phone.
Pick & Scroll News
March 19, 2025
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Good morning. If the first thing you did this morning was grab your phone and start scrolling, you're the target market for a new app called Touch Grass.
Touch Grass won’t let you mindlessly spiral through Instagram until you physically touch grass - because fresh air might be the dopamine hit you actually need.
As with every pay-to-win game, you can actually pay to bypass the whole thing, because nothing says chronically online like bribing an app to avoid fresh air.
All the headlines and more below...
AUSTRALIAN NEWS
Hidden costs eroding Australians’ savings interest
Australian banks are quietly reducing savings account rates while prominently advertising home loan rate cuts. LINK
Chinese visitors have surpassed New Zealand as Australia's top short-term arrivals whilst spending almost twice as much per trip in January. LINK
Australia's tech investment has stagnated at 1.7% of GDP. LINK
Australian banks must disclose automated decision-making processes as new AI regulations emerge for financial services. LINK
Victoria has imposed land tax on 400,000 small business owners and Airbnb hosts as the state lowers the taxable threshold from $300,000 to $50,000. LINK
Banks are using artificial intelligence to access real-time information about potential frauds, analysing about 35 million events daily to get ahead of sophisticated cybercriminals. LINK
AI and quantum computing are transforming digital banking as 99.1% of interactions now occur online. LINK
COMPANY NEWS
Deloitte reduces partners amid consulting slowdown
Deloitte reduced its partnership by nearly 10% to approximately 900 partners over the past year. LINK
Forever 21 has filed for bankruptcy for the second time in 6 years, citing rising costs, competition from online retailers Shein and Temu, and weak mall traffic. LINK
Woolworths' Click & Collect service costs supermarkets up to $600M annually whilst experts predict costs could rise to $1.5B in 5 years. LINK
Westpac has initiated an internal review of mortgage origination processes after regulatory scrutiny of its RAMS unit. LINK
BYD has developed a 5-minute charging battery system to compete with Tesla in the EV market. LINK
Global payments platform Airwallex pledged more than $50M to support the next generation of innovators, causing big banks to take notice of the unicorn startup's commitment to social impact. LINK
GPT has taken $1B worth of shopping centre management rights from Lendlease as it expands its retail property portfolio. LINK
xAI has acquired AI video startup Hotshot to enhance its generative AI capabilities. LINK
Uber is disputing tax payroll for its NSW drivers based on the classification of driver payments. LINK
Alphabet is negotiating to acquire cybersecurity firm Wiz for $33B in its largest potential deal. LINK
PepsiCo will acquire prebiotic soda brand Poppi for $1.95B to expand its functional beverage portfolio. LINK
New Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan plans manufacturing improvements and AI expansion following a $19B annual loss. LINK
ONE MORE SCROLL
Editor’s Pick: My partner snores. Tricks to get some sleep.
Odd Pick: Swearing is linked with increased pain tolerance and strength.
TOGETHER WITH
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TRIVIA
What do all of these countries have in common?
Singapore
Luxembourg
Monaco
San Marino
Answer below
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ANSWER
All countries have a capital with the same name as the country itself.
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