Tech Policy Design Institute (TPDi)

Have you experienced workplace cyber abuse? 76% of Australians have. But who is responsible for change? Tech is a tool. There’s always a risk of misuse, and the workplace is no different: from bullying or harassment via digital platforms to monitoring activity and intruding into your personal life. This is a gendered problem, with women twice as likely to experience it as men. TPDi Co-Founder Zoe Jay Hawkins joined the Global Institute for Women's Leadership - ANU Summit opening panel to talk prevention with: ▪️Anna Cody Sex Discrimination Commissioner Australian Human Rights Commission ▪️Heidi Snell A/g GM Regulatory Operations Division eSafety Commissioner ▪️Dr Cameron Cliff Founder Capyble ▪️Moderated by social justice journalist and cyberhate expert at GIWL Ginger Gorman Cyber abuse isn’t “inevitable”. It is enabled, or prevented, by design decisions we make about technology and the policies that govern it. What steps do you think should be taken to prevent workplace cyber abuse and improve gender equality? #cyberabuse #genderequality #techpolicy Dr. Elise Stephenson GAICD Jacko Jackson Samantha Lau

🎙️ From 10 December, will you need to prove your age to use social media, and what might the new law mean for your privacy? Episode 3 of our 𝘼𝙪𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙖 𝙫𝙨 𝙎𝙤𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙈𝙚𝙙𝙞𝙖 mini-series breaks down the law and the tech behind Australia’s social media age restrictions. #TechMirror host Johanna Weaver and expert guests unpack:  • which social media services are "𝗶𝗻" 𝗼𝗿 "𝗼𝘂𝘁” and why  • what companies will need to do to comply while protecting your privacy  • the difference between 𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲, 𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻   • whether the tech worked when trialed in Australian schools  • plus, another less talked about reform, years in the making, that may have an even bigger impact on how Aussie children experience the online world. Hear straight from the Commissioners enforcing the law Julie Inman - Grant and Carly Kind, as well age assurance technology expert Andrew Hammond, and Associate Editor at Crikey Cam Wilson. 🔗 𝗟𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗲𝗽𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗱𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁

𝐂𝐚𝐩𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐢𝐬 𝐚 𝐬𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦, 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐚 𝐬𝐲𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐮𝐬. We talk a lot about “skills pipelines”, but training more people doesn’t guarantee national capability. What matters is throughput: whether AI skills actually turn into confident AI decisions and informed adoption inside organisations. That point came through strongly in today's AI Week workshop hosted by ACS (Australian Computer Society), in collaboration with Tech Policy Design Institute (TPDi), the National AI Centre, the Australian Institute of Company Directors, the Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC) & Dr Ian Oppermann. As we presented the TPDI Discussion Paper 𝘍𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘈𝘐 𝘚𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘵𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘈𝘐 𝘈𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘺, a key discussion point stood out: Australia focuses heavily on producing skills, but far less on enabling talent mobility. Capability isn’t just what we teach, but what can move across contexts, disciplines and borders. Which raises the real question: what might it take to build genuine agency over AI skills? • mobility, so capability can flow where it’s needed • execution pathways, so ideas become practice • throughput, so training becomes real capability #AIWeekAustralia #AI Josh Griggs Helen McHugh MACS(Snr) CP Department of Industry, Science and Resources

🎙️ Why did Parliament push through one of Australia’s fastest tech reforms at high speed, and what opportunity did that pace cost us? Episode 2 of our 𝘈𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘢 𝘷𝘴 𝘚𝘰𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘔𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘢 podcast mini-series has landed. Johanna Weaver takes Tech Mirror listeners inside the political forces that pushed social media minimum-age restrictions to the top of the national agenda, a perfect storm of election pressures, competitive federalism, advocacy and legitimate public concern. But that speed came at a cost. This episode unpacks the major missed opportunity: the chance to use the reform to incentivise platforms to redesign their services around children’s needs, and why that lever was ultimately dropped. Hear from: eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman - Grant Crikey's Associate Editor Cam Wilson Digital Rights Watch Chair Lizzie O'Shea FAAL   Young and Resilient Research Centre Co-Director Prof Amanda Third The take way? Tech regulation can happen quickly, when politicians are motivated. As Lizzie puts it: “I don’t mean to sound cynical, but I do think there was a political imperative at play here.” 🔗 𝗟𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗧𝗲𝗰𝗵 𝗠𝗶𝗿𝗿𝗼𝗿 𝗲𝗽𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗱𝗲 𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗶𝗻 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀

“𝘐𝘵 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘭𝘺 𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘵 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘭𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘸𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘯 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘶𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘦𝘤𝘩𝘯𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘺" - reflected a participant in TPDi's AI, Emerging Tech & Policy Bootcamp. That is exactly what we set out to build: a space for policymakers, civil society advocates, industry leaders, technologists, and researchers to experiment and rethink how they approach tech policy. If the Bootcamp reinforced one thing, it’s the value of adopting a curious and ambitious approach: ▪️ Bringing different disciplines and sectors together to collaborate ▪️ Staying open-minded to critique and creative problem solving ▪️ Focusing on the future we are seeking to build with technology At TPDi, we believe shaping technology for the benefit of humanity requires this mix of creativity, constructive critique, and collaboration. A huge thank you to our Bootcamp participants for engaging so openly, and bringing their unique expertise to this experience. 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗱𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗲𝗰𝗵 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝘆? #TechPolicy #Education #Innovation Andrew Brodie Deadly Coders, Arvind Ramana Australian Space Agency, Sophie Morey Working with Women Alliance, Chris Fulluck Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Tom Sulston Digital Rights Watch, Daniel C. eSafety Commissioner, Darcy Sharpe, Dilara D., Hamish Songsmith Optiver, Dr. Jana Schmitz Commonwealth Treasury, Jenelle Kenner, Kate Farr Premier's Department NSW, Nea Dhillon Victoria University, Michaela Gyasi-Agyei, Osmond Chiu Community and Public Sector Union, Sabina Streatfeild Viktoria K. Commonwealth Bank, Seldon Coventry Transport for NSW, Thomas Howroyd Department of Industry, Science and Resources.

𝐌𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐀𝐈 𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞? The word sovereignty dominates AI debates, yet it’s used to mean everything from strategic self-reliance to cultural preservation. Beneath the rhetoric, a more useful question is emerging: 👉 Do we have the agency to steer outcomes, protect and promote our interests, and capture value in a globally connected system? Power in a connected world flows from the ability to manage relationships, not retreat from them. Today TPDi releases 𝐅𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐀𝐈 𝐒𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐭𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐀𝐈 𝐀𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐲, 𝐌𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐚𝐩𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲, 𝐀𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐲 & 𝐏𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 . In it, the AI Agency Tool provides the first national Stocktake measuring all Australia’s AI capabilities, developed in consultation with government, civil society, research, and business communities. It shows where AI capabilities are strong, where dependencies persist, and where targeted focus is required to expand national maturity in critical areas. The AI Agency Tool breaks AI capability into 101 measurable elements across six layers, from infrastructure and data to skills and governance, giving policymakers a shared language to see where countries can build, partner, or lead. 📘 Read the Discussion Paper and share your feedback by 15 December 2025. 👉 https://lnkd.in/gEhVunRM Zoe Jay Hawkins, Johanna Weaver, Rebecca Razavi Meredith Hodgman, Vili Lehdonvirta, Mercedes Page Grateful for the invaluable feedback we have received during the national consultation and our expert peer reviewers; Andrew Brodie Belinda Dennett Brendan Hopper Clare Beaton-Wells Dave L. David Masters Elanor Huntington Ian Oppermann Josh Griggs S. Kate Conroy PhD Lee Hickin Liam Carroll Mark Stickells AM Rosie Hicks Sally-Ann Williams FTSE Scott Winch Nadia Court Tobias Feakin Simon Kriss Simon Spencer Sue Keay Taylor Dee Hawkins Tim Carton #AI #techpolicy #power #australia

  🌊🌊🌊𝐖𝐡𝐨 𝐨𝐰𝐧𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐜𝐞𝐚𝐧? 🌊🌊🌊 Welcome to 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦 𝐏𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 the second scenario in TPDis 𝐁𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐮𝐫𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐞 futures series, a glimpse into a future where the risk of letting infrastructure policy lag behind commercial innovation are real and the region’s lifelines are all in private hands. Access to the internet is fast. efficient, profitable, and exclusive. In this world, the internet still works, but governments are competing for the favour of the big tech ‘Cable Kings’. 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧 𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐡 𝐩𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐲 𝐢𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐦𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧? 💲 Governments balancing public & private digital infrastructure 💲 Businesses built on global platforms and data flows 💲 Civil society and regional partners fighting for open, inclusive connectivity ▶ Watch Platform Power → #innovation #technology #leadership #strategy

🚨 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐩𝐨𝐝𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐢-𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬: 𝐀𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐚’𝐬 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝-𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐬𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐦𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐚 𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐥𝐚𝐰. 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐝𝐢𝐝 𝐰𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐭 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐤𝐢𝐝𝐬, 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬?⁣ ⁣ When Australia became the first country in the world to set a minimum age for social media, the headlines were global, but the experts were divided. In our new five-part 𝐓𝐞𝐜𝐡 𝐌𝐢𝐫𝐫𝐨𝐫 𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐢-𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 we unpack the harms the law seeks to prevent, trace how young people’s use of social media became a flashpoint in the lead-up to the 2025 Federal Election, and explain what the legislation actually means. Hosted by Johanna Weaver the series explores what will really happen this December, when it comes into force and what must happen next. Hear from the people at the centre of this online safety experiment Julie Inman - Grant Professor Jonathan Haidt, Dr Danielle Einstein, Professor Amanda Third, Carly Kind, Cam Wilson, Minh Hoang, Lizzie O'Shea FAAL, Andrew Hammond and Gina Cass-Gottlieb 🎧 Listen to the trailer now and subscribe where ever you get your pods. Episode 1 Dropping Tuesday 11 November. #Agerestriction #SocialMedia #OnlineSafety #SMMAR

𝐈𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐚 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐛𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐜𝐚𝐧’𝐭 𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐚 𝐛𝐞𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐭𝐬 ‘𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐜’ ... ... ... 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐥𝐨𝐛𝐚𝐥 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐭, 𝐚𝐬 𝐰𝐞 𝐤𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐢𝐭, 𝐢𝐬 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐝. Welcome to The Great Divide, the first futures scenario in TPDi’s Beneath the Surface, a glimpse into a possible 2045 where a 2038 “cable conflict” fractures the Indo-Pacific into rival connectivity zones. This scenario explores what happens when control replaces cooperation, and policy silos snap the backbone of global connectivity. When over-securitisation and distrust become the default, the cost isn’t just technical, it’s economic, social, and strategic. 💼 𝐖𝐡𝐨 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐩𝐚𝐲 𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: Businesses reliant on cross-border data flows  Governments managing digital sovereignty and supply-chain resilience  Investors assessing geopolitical risk in infrastructure projects Run a futures workshop using the 𝐂𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐅𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐬 𝐓𝐨𝐨𝐥𝐤𝐢𝐭 to test how your organisation would adapt in this world and  get ready to shape the future of technology. (Link to the full report in comments.)    ▶ Watch The Great Divide → #DigitalInfrastructure #Foresight #Connectivity #ScenarioPlanning