Australia's strategic environment is changing rapidly, but defence procurement and industry must move faster to keep pace.

Speaking with Defence Connect news editor Robert Dougherty, former Australian prime minister Scott Morrison discusses the five-year evolution of AUKUS, Australia's defence industrial base, China's economic and strategic influence, critical minerals and the need to accelerate defence procurement.

Morrison argues that AUKUS is already delivering tangible benefits, with US submarines operating from Australia and investment progressing at Henderson to support US, UK and Australian submarine operations.

The pair also discuss US submarine production constraints and Australia's plans to develop a tier-one domestic defence prime.

Morrison highlights that Australia should maintain trade with China where appropriate while strengthening economic and strategic resilience through closer cooperation with aligned countries.

The conversation turns to critical minerals, with Morrison arguing China's use of supply-chain leverage is accelerating investment in alternative sources. Australia, he says, has an important role as an extractor, while processing capabilities can be distributed across allied countries, including the US, Japan and South Korea.

Looking towards the next decade, Morrison calls for faster defence decision making and procurement because systems designed for the post-Cold War environment are no longer suited to today's strategic conditions.

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Information has always shaped power and influence – but in the age of artificial intelligence, the speed, scale and sophistication with which narratives can be created and deployed has changed dramatically.

In this episode of the Contested Ground podcast, Phil Tarrant and Major General (Ret'd) Dr Marcus Thompson explore how the tradecraft of information warfare is increasingly intersecting with the commercial world, and why influence, narrative and information advantages are becoming critical strategic capabilities for modern businesses.

They unpack the parallels – and important differences – between military information operations and commercial competition, from shaping perceptions and gaining decision superiority to defending against misinformation and responding to crises at speed.

With AI now enabling highly targeted content to be created in hours rather than weeks, Tarrant and Thompson examine what this means for business leaders, why communications can no longer be left solely to marketing teams, and why organisations need the people, systems and strategy to compete in an information environment moving faster than ever before.

On this episode of Momentum Media's Property Buzz, Phil Tarrant and Liam Garman examine how a raft of recent policy announcements, from tax changes to credit card surcharges, are buffeting the economy and creating unintended consequences that will impact every Australian.

The pair pull apart the latest CPI figures to question the federal government's explanation for inflation, with Garman arguing that government spending is crowding out the private sector and weighing on productivity.

Tarrant then turns to the removal of residential lending from SMSFs, which he says is putting pressure on builders and the viability of new projects. He also argues that falling home values could undermine the aged care system, with fewer older Australians able to draw on their homes to fund entry costs, leaving families facing a difficult situation at a vulnerable time and potentially adding a significant cost to the budget.

The pair also discuss the launch of Banking Daily, Momentum Media's new financial services platform, and how it aims to deliver the latest intelligence for people working in the sector.