US adds CATL to list of Chinese firms allegedly aiding Beijing's military | Japan to pitch high-speed optical networks as next big export to US | AI will become a Madison Avenue sensation in 2025
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Washington placed Tencent, CATL, and other Chinese firms on a trade blacklist, alleging they support Beijing’s military modernization. The move aims to curb technology transfers to China’s defense industry. Beijing protests the measure, accusing the U.S. of politicizing trade, potentially deepening bilateral tensions and confrontation. Reuters
Japan is set to promote advanced high-speed optical networks as its next significant technology export to the U.S., seeking to leverage its expertise in telecom infrastructure. This initiative aims to compete globally in the race for faster data speeds while further strengthening bilateral economic ties. Nikkei
Generative AI will transform Madison Avenue by automating creative processes, delivering highly targeted campaigns, and personalizing consumer experiences. Innovators like OpenAI, Meta, and Google will develop advanced tools for advertisers, cutting costs and boosting efficiency. Trust, regulation, and data privacy remain concerns amid unstoppable disruption. Reuters
ASPI
What are subsea cables, and what happens when one gets cut?
The Sydney Morning Herald
David Swan
A recent report from ASPI made five key recommendations for Australia to become more attractive as a subsea cable hub, including that the Australian government better support and strengthen regional repair and maintenance capabilities, and engage more closely with industry.
“Australia’s subsea cable resilience is generally good,” ASPI technical specialist Jocelinn Kang said. “This is because of several factors, including that multiple cables land at different geographic locations and offer a degree of redundancy and resilience. Another is that Australia enforces legislation to protect cables in the shallow waters as they make landfall, designating certain areas as cable protection zones.”
World
A new electricity Supercycle is underway
The Economist
Staff
Spending by tech giants on AI is contributing to rising energy demand, flowing through to increased electricity consumption and investment. Some data centres gobble up as much energy as a nuclear-power plant generates, requiring network operators to upgrade transformers, power lines and control equipment.
Australia
Sydney’s newest landmark Tech Central to ‘breathe life’ into the city: Mike Cannon-Brookes
The Australian
Jared Lynch
Atlassian co-founder and chief executive Mike Cannon-Brookes has welcomed a mooted ‘refreshed’ strategy by the NSW government for Sydney’s Tech Central innovation precinct. The new plan, set for release in coming months, focuses on not just attracting more tech companies to the city but boosting amenities, including housing and healthcare.
China
How Huawei brought on a Sputnik moment in world trade
The Washington Post
Eva Dou
China’s biggest telecommunications manufacturer drew tough U.S. sanctions. It is still flourishing, but globalization is on the ropes.
China’s tech giants vow to fix algorithm issues amid government crackdown
South China Morning Post
Coco Feng
Major Chinese internet platforms have vowed to improve their algorithms, after the mainland’s internet watchdog launched a campaign to address the misuse of the technology underpinning the recommendation functions of apps and websites.
Undersea cable near Taiwan damaged in suspected sabotage by China
ABC News
Najma Sambul
An undersea cable off the coast of Taiwan was damaged on January 3, allegedly by the Shunxin-39, a Cameroonian-registered cargo ship with suspected links to mainland China. The incident follows the alleged maritime sabotage of undersea cables and pipelines in the Baltic Sea.
USA
US adds Tencent, CATL to list of Chinese firms allegedly aiding Beijing's military
Reuters
Michael Martina, David Shepardson and Karen Freifeld
The U.S. Defense Department said on Monday it has added Chinese tech giants including gaming and social media leader Tencent Holdings and battery maker CATL to a list of firms it says work with China's military. The list also included chip maker Changxin Memory Technologies, Quectel Wireless and drone maker Autel Robotics, according to a document published on Monday.
US sanctions China’s Integrity Tech over cyber espionage campaigns
Tech Monitor
Refna Tharayil
Between mid-2022 and late 2023, Flax Typhoon allegedly used Integrity Tech infrastructure to exploit networks, gaining access to servers and workstations of US and European organisations, including a California-based entity.
North Asia
Japan to pitch high-speed optical networks as next big export to US
Nikkei Asia
Nikkei staff writers
Japan is set to start a government-backed effort to promote light-based telecommunications technology to U.S. tech giants. As early as this year, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications will support the establishment of a demonstration facility in Silicon Valley. Companies such as Nippon Telegraph and Telephone and tech group Fujitsu are candidates for participation.
YouTube faces backlash over selective pricing policy in Korea
The Korea Herald
Jie Ye-eun
US tech giant Google is under scrutiny in Korea for its selective pricing plans for YouTube Premium users here, charging them significantly higher fees than users in other countries.
Southeast Asia
Tech groups to pay premium for energy for Malaysia data centres, says minister
Financial Times
Attracta Mooney and Owen Walker
Global tech companies should expect to pay a premium for access to energy and water to serve data centres in Malaysia, the country’s environment minister has said, as booming demand for artificial intelligence infrastructure puts pressure on resources.
South Asia
How the draft data protection rules 2025 will change children’s data processing in India
Medianama
Kamya Pandey
The newly released draft Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Rules, 2025 say that online platforms must check the age and identity of the individual identifying as a parent when obtaining verifiable parental consent for processing the data of an under-18 user.
India's internet shutdown crisis: A growing threat to digital rights
Global Voice
Kanav Narayan Sahgal
Every year, multiple digital rights watchdogs meticulously document the frequency and scale of internet shutdowns occurring globally. One such organization, the Software Freedom Law Centre (SFLC.in), is a Delhi-based not-for-profit.
Ukraine - Russia
Drones, exploding parcels and sabotage: how hybrid tactics target the West
The New York Times
Lara Jakes
Russia and other hostile states have become increasingly brazen in adopting “gray zone” attacks against Europe and the United States, leaving defense officials with a dilemma: How to respond?
Russia orders Yandex to scrub maps and images of strategic oil refinery
The Record by Recorded Future
Daryna Antoniuk
A Russian court has reportedly ordered the local tech giant Yandex to block access to maps and images of one of the country’s largest oil refineries on its platforms, citing Ukraine’s repeated drone attacks on the facility.
Europe
Italy plans $1.5 Billion SpaceX telecom security services deal
Bloomberg
Daniele Lepido and Donato Paolo Mancini
Italy is in advanced talks with Elon Musk’s SpaceX for a deal to provide secure telecommunications for the nation’s government — the largest such project in Europe, people with knowledge of the matter said Sunday.
UK
U.K.’s Starmer slams ‘lies and misinformation’ after Elon Musk attacks
The New York Times
Mark Landler
Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain on Monday fired back at Elon Musk after days of inflammatory social media posts by Mr. Musk, the billionaire owner of X, indirectly accusing him and others of “spreading lies and misinformation” about victims of child sex abuse gangs.
Elon Musk Has a Strange Fixation With Trolling Britain
The New York Times
Mark Landler
In a barrage of posts rife with misinformation, he revived questions about a child sex abuse scandal, vilified the prime minister and defended a jailed far-right agitator.
UK support for CES technology show has dropped off, says organiser
The Times
Tom Saunders
CES, the world’s largest technology trade show, does not have “the same support from the UK government as other countries provide”, the event’s organiser has said. Gary Shapiro, who runs the world’s largest technology trade show in Las Vegas, said the lack of support from the government was ‘crazy’ given the UK’s potential
Middle East
Israel unveils domestically built quantum computer
APDR
Israel’s first domestically built quantum computer, utilising advanced superconducting technology, is now operational. The 20-qubit quantum computer was developed under the leadership of the Israel Innovation Authority, Israel Aerospace Industries, Hebrew University, and the university’s technology transfer company, Yissum.
NZ & Pacific Islands
Vanuatu’s digital vulnerability
The Interpreter
Cynthia Mehboob
Last month’s magnitude 7.3 earthquake near Vanuatu caused widespread devastation and left at least a dozen people dead. The disaster also exposed a critical vulnerability in Vanuatu’s digital infrastructure, specifically the over-reliance on a single undersea cable, ICN1.
Big Tech
TikTok knew its livestreaming feature allowed child exploitation, state lawsuit alleges
The Guardian
Dara Kerr
TikTok has long been aware that its video livestream feature has been misused to harm children, according to newly revealed details in a lawsuit brought against the social media company by the state of Utah. Those harms include child sexual exploitation and what Utah calls “an open-door policy allowing predators and criminals to exploit users”.
TikTok and Government Clash in Last Round of Supreme Court Briefs
The New York Times
Adam Liptak
The two sides in the momentous clash at the Supreme Court over a measure that could shut down TikTok made their closing written arguments on Friday, sharply disputing China’s influence over the site and the role the First Amendment should play in evaluating the law.
Apple to pay $95 million to settle Siri privacy lawsuit
Reuters
Jonathan Stempel
Apple agreed to pay $95 million in cash to settle a proposed class action lawsuit claiming that its voice-activated Siri assistant violated users' privacy. A preliminary settlement was filed on Tuesday night in the Oakland, California federal court, and requires approval by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey White.
Artificial Intelligence
AI will become a Madison Avenue sensation in 2025
Reuters
Jennifer Saba
The next big thing in technology will be powered by advertising money, too. Google, Facebook and Instagram ballooned in prominence and profitability by leveraging brand-building budgets from Tide laundry detergent to local plumbers.
So meta. AI-written paper says AI is the future of legal scholarship
Reuters
Karen Sloan
A law professor tapped ChatGPT to write his latest article, which argues that generative artificial intelligence programs will "expand the horizons" of legal scholarship. Suffolk University Law Dean Andrew Perlman, a longtime scholar in the field of law and technology, asked ChatGPT — an AI program trained to understand and produce human-like text — to “develop a novel conception of the future of legal scholarship” that hinges on how legal scholars might use generative AI.
Meta is killing off its own AI-powered Instagram and Facebook profiles
The Guardian
Johana Bhuiyan
Meta is deleting Facebook and Instagram profiles of AI characters the company created over a year ago after users rediscovered some of the profiles and engaged them in conversations, screenshots of which went viral.
Google DeepMind researchers think they found a solution to AI's 'peak data' problem
Business Insider
Alistair Barr
OpenAI cofounder Ilya Sutskever announced something at a recent conference that should have had the AI industry trembling with fear.
Misc
How to be a 'digital minimalist' and gain control over your smartphone and apps
ABC News
Anna Salleh, Sana Qadar and James Bullen for All in the Mind
"Digital minimalist" Charlie Rewilding found benefits to creating a more permanent change in her relationship with digital technology. After some serious "digital decluttering" — disconnecting from apps and hardware that you spend too long with, or make you feel bad — the idea is to slowly and selectively reconnect so they serve you better.
Jobs
ASPI Deputy Director – Cyber, Technology & Security Program
ASPI
ASPI is seeking a talented leader for the Deputy Director of Cyber, Technology & Security Operations. This is an exceptional opportunity to contribute to one of the Indo-Pacific’s leading think tanks, focused on advancing policy and research at the intersection of cyber, technology, and national security. The CTS Program is ASPI’s largest program, and includes ASPI’s China Investigations and Analysis team. The closing date for applications is Friday, 17 January 2025 – an early application is advised as we reserve the right to close the vacancy early if suitable applications are received.
ASPI Analyst – Hybrid Threats – Cyber, Technology & Security Program
ASPI
ASPI is seeking a motivated and detail-oriented individual to join the Cyber, Technology & Security program as an Analyst – Hybrid Threats. This role involves contributing to the analysis of hybrid threats and information manipulation, including election integrity, resilience of critical technologies, and cybersecurity. The closing date for applications is Friday, 17 January 2025 – an early application is advised as we reserve the right to close the vacancy early if suitable applications are received.
The Daily Cyber & Tech Digest is brought to you by the Cyber, Technology & Security team at ASPI.
