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Data centres have supported up to a gigawatt of power purchases since 2020.

We’re spending bucket loads on the thing that could kill us. Here’s why

Business investment is finally driving our economy forward. But what we’re investing in could end humanity as we know it.

  • Millie Muroi

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On the rise, even without candidates … One Nation leader Pauline Hanson.

Why are voters cranky enough to turn to Hanson? I have a theory

Both major parties are losing votes to One Nation, but I know whose problem I’d prefer to have.

  • Ross Gittins
Northern NSW will experience some of the harshest effects of climate change reflecting high exposure to flooding, drought and bushfire, and high reliance on climate-sensitive or outdoor industries.

You’re losing $20k a year because of climate change – and it’s predicted to get worse

As well as the cost of extreme weather and natural disasters, longer-term climatic changes are also a drag on economic productivity, the NSW Net Zero Commission says.

  • Caitlin Fitzsimmons
The Reserve Bank’s next move may be a rate cut, says NAB senior economists.

One of Australia’s biggest banks says interest rate pain is over – for now

The Reserve Bank has lifted interest rates at its past three meetings. But the NAB believes its next move will be a cut to prop up a struggling economy.

  • Shane Wright
Life satisfaction has nose-dived among Australians, led down by those in their 20s and 30s.

Every generation of Australians thinks life is worse than a decade ago

Australians, particularly those trying to get into their own home, are increasingly dissatisfied with their lives. And it’s hitting the political system.

  • Shane Wright
Data centres illustration

Australia’s data centre explosion: Why the surge in NSW, Victoria is now eclipsing the mining boom

The rapid expansion in global data centres could be the single largest economic lift since the railroad construction boom of the 1880s and 1890s, surpassing even the mining explosion of the 2010s.

  • Shane Wright
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Data centres are frequently criticised for devouring land and power while offering few long-term jobs once construction wraps up.

AI could destroy us. Too late now. We’re up to our eyeballs in it

AI is promising an economic and medical nirvana. But from Gandalf to people watching new data centres in their communities, fear of AI is growing.

  • Shane Wright
Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the figures were strong compared to other economies.

Rates may hold for rest of year as Australians struggle under rising costs

Private business investment also jumped by 6 per cent in the March quarter, driven by a 30-year-high increase in machinery and equipment, much of which is used to build data centres.

  • Shane Wright
AI will disrupt the nation’s jobs market - but the early signs are muted.

The AI jobs apocalypse hasn’t landed in Australia – yet

New research into AI shows that it has yet to hit Australia’s jobs market. But data centre construction means it may be about to.

  • Shane Wright
Rising fuel prices had pushed inflation higher in March.

Inflation retreats from three-year high but other signs are more worrying

But in a sign that price pressures remain embedded in the economy, the closely watched measure of underlying inflation rose slightly to 3.4 per cent.

  • Shane Wright and Brittany Busch