Industry News

DAVID SWAN OCTOBER 15, 2019 The Australian Ridesharing giant Uber is gearing up to launch electric scooters and bikes in Australia, with the Silicon Valley company in discussions with councils across the country to bring its ‘JUMP’ vehicles Down Under. Speaking exclusively to The Australian, Uber’s boss of ANZ and North Asia Susan Anderson said one of her key priorities was to bring Uber’s micro mobility options to Australia, and that conversations well underway. Uber is already trialling electric scooters in New Zealand’s capital Wellington, and Ms Anderson said once implemented, the bikes and scooters would help put a significant dent in road congestion across Australia’s cities. “What we’ve seen in San Francisco for instance is that for short distances, people often choose scooters or bikes over taking an Uber X, so there are far less cars doing short trips around cities,” she said. “Over time we think there’s a…

We will have to be the best in the world at what we do if we are to survive the AI era. There are cases for optimism and pessimism. Paul Bassat Oct 15, 2019 AFR In business, there is nothing more exciting than a talented group of founders with a shared vision who succeed in building a business that has enormous impact. Disruption is a powerful force that positively impacts society. Innovative companies are making an incredible contribution to society by saving lives, providing solutions to some of our society’s most pressing problems or offering products and services that provide great utility. Those societies that innovate will reap the benefits whilst there will be significant headwinds for countries that don’t embrace innovation. Historically, innovation has been built upon a specific technological development, such as the invention of the printing press, steam engine or electricity. In our era, the primary form…

Jennifer Gould Keil October 13, 2019 New York Post “Goffee” reusable cupsMatthew McDermott Do you stand in line for five or 10 minutes every morning to get coffee, pay $4 or $5 for it, and toss your cup into the garbage when you’re done? If so, Vincent Meyer believes your routine is ripe for disruption. The 35-year-old, French-born tech entrepreneur has raised nearly $1 million to fuel a fast-growing service in New York City that delivers coffee in ceramic mugs to workers’ desks every morning — and picks them up for washing so it can use them again the next day. Goffee — pronounced like “coffee,” only with a “g” — launched a year ago from an industrial space in Hell’s Kitchen at Eighth Avenue and 39th Street, and is currently delivering 1,000 cups a day to offices throughout Midtown. That number is expected to climb to 4,000 cups a…

Interesting article follows from the AFR on medical cannabis. We visited a legal retail cannabis outlet in LA just last week as part of our overseas study tour. A very clean and professional operation. Customers are age verified before being allowed to enter and products are extremely well merchandise. Fixtures with up to date digital information have an ‘Apple’ store feel in terms of the clean uncluttered look and staff offer advice and service to customers. A few pic follow. Will we ever see such operations selling legal cannabis or a range of cannabis infused products  to consumers in Australia? Jeff Rogut CEO AACS Cannabis stocks attract new investors AFR Yolanda Redrup Oct 12, 2019 A tough regulatory environment has proved a buzzkill for the euphoria that drove listed medical cannabis stocks sky-high this year, but beaten-up valuations are attracting new investors with an eye on long-term growth in the…

9News Retail and food workers are facing rape and death threats, threats with a weapon, sexual harassment and physical abuse from some customers. Industry giants – including Coles, Woolworths, Kmart and Target – have now banded together pledging to eradicate what the retail union has called a “customer abuse epidemic”. The reporting of abuse will be encouraged and aggressive customers could be banned by stores being urged to adopt a zero tolerance of attacks on staff. KFC, Hungry Jacks, Myer and Bunnings are among the other companies to have also signed the industry pledge, which was unveiled by the Shop Distributive and Allied Employees Association (SDA) in Sydney on Monday. A survey of more than 1000 workers by the SDA in December last year showed 87 per cent of respondents had experienced verbal abuse or aggressive behaviour. Thirty-two per cent said incidents of abuse or violence involved behaviour that was…

There’s a reason—actually, a few—and none of them are very flattering to American politicians. This article originally appeared on VICE US Whenever Matt Culley travels to England, he feels as if he has entered a sort of Twilight Zone.  A prominent vaping advocate on YouTube in the United States, Culley went so far as to describe the scene in the United Kingdom, where he often attends conferences, as a sort of “alternate reality.”  Imagine: You’re visiting a loved one in the hospital, and after popping into the cafeteria to eat a premade bologna sandwich or Jell-o, you’re jonesing for a cigarette. Smoking, however, has been prohibited in or around the place—even in your car. You’re out of e-juice, too. But that’s not a problem: You’re at the hospital, after all, and you can just run into the vape shop attached to it.  That scenario may sound absurd, but it’s plausible…