Technology
How to talk to animals
Have you ever wondered what your pet would say if they could talk? Alexis Devine is an artist, entrepreneur and dog whisperer Alexis from Seattle, and she's been hard at work teaching her sheepadoodle… Audio
Saveloys out, spinach in: Here's how our spending habits have changed
If you think about what you - or your parents - were spending your money on 30 years ago, it might be quite different to how you spend it now. Audio
California targets Musk's xAI over sexualised deepfakes
The state's attorney-general has ordered xAI to stop Grok from generating nonconsensual sexualised images, including those of women and children.
A chatbot that chooses groceries? Woolworths' new AI push
Analysis: Woolworths' AI chatbot will soon plan meals and build shopping baskets, raising questions about who really makes decisions at checkout.
Mother of Elon Musk's son sues his AI bot over AI-deepfake images
Ashley St. Clair, alleges the his AI chatbot Grok generated sexually explicit deepfake images of her without her consent.
Morning Report Essentials for Friday 16 January
A former All Blacks captain says New Zealand Rugby was left with no option but to sack Scott Robertson; With an internet blackout in place in Iran, only scant details about what is happening on the… Audio
No 8 wire mentality making Kiwis vulnerable to scammers
A new report from a global cybersecurity company says online scammers are using our "number 8 wire" mentality against us. Specialist systems engineer at Gen, Dean Williams spoke to Lauren Crimp. Audio
Internet blackout in place as Starlink deployed to Iran
With an internet blackout in place in Iran, only scant details about what is happening on the ground are emerging via the Elon Musk-owned internet satellite Starlink. Geopolitical analyst Dr Geoffrey… Audio
X marks the spot: Has Elon Musk's Grok gone too far?
Explainer - The billionaire has been under fire over AI deepfakes - with Christopher Luxon's office calling them "concerning." What's going on?
Does adding 'please' and 'thank you' to ChatGPT really waste energy?
Analysis - As artificial intelligence use expands, so does its underlying footprint.
'Are you dead?' Chinese app for single living goes viral
China may have up to 200 million one-person households.
Manage My Health data breach: Everything we know so far
At the end of 2025 hackers got access to health data being held by privately owned patient portal Manage My Health.
NZ's health data hack needs a proper diagnosis
Analysis: Two cyber hacks have highlighted the vulnerability of New Zealand's digital health systems.
KFC app 'more secure' than Manage My Health, expert claims
Colonel Sanders has better web security than many digital health providers, an IT expert has claimed, blaming the government for not enforcing standards. Audio
More patient data could be at risk says IT expert
An IT expert says even more of the country's patient information portals are at risk - because there's no-one checking private providers. Callum McMenamin, a web standards consultant who has worked on… Audio
Zuckerberg names ex-Trump advisor as Meta president
She will join the team as it scales what Mark Zuckerberg described as "the massive physical and financial model that will power the next decade of computing".
'We can't rely on goodwill': NZ lags behind on battling AI creation of sexual images
NZ needs have a bigger conversation around what privacy means in the AI era, says an organisation working to prevent child sexual exploitation.
Meta kicks half a million Aussie kids off its platforms
The social media giant says it removed 330,000 users from Instagram, 173,000 from Facebook and 39,000 from Threads in December.
Museum Stop: Faraday Museum
Rather than read and look at pieces of history, our museum stop today is all about doing. Set inside Napier's original power station, the Faraday Museum of Technology makes science, tech and history… Audio
Doctors frustrated amid Manage My Health confusion
GPs are frustrated by what they say are mixed messages about the extent of the Manage My Health data breach. Audio
