The episode is a daily business news briefing from Western Australia, hosted by Justin Friss. It begins with headlines on political donations, reporting that Gina Rinehart's Hancock Prospecting donated almost $900,000 to Advance Australia, a right-wing movement campaigning against immigration, net zero, and Welcome to Country. The segment notes Advance Australia's disclosed donations of $13.4 million for 2024-25. The next story covers Perth-founded cybersecurity company Coria, formerly Family Zone, which is in takeover talks with US-based Aura Consolidated Group, with a bid reportedly doubling its share price. Coria provides school monitoring software and has expanded globally. The third headline discusses Perth mining technology firm Imdex, which spent over $30 million to complete its full acquisition of Melbourne-based Datarock, integrating its AI-powered geoscience technology. The episode then transitions to an interview segment, where host Sam Jones speaks with journalist Nadia Burihajo about her article on the Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre (BCEC). Burihajo explains that BCEC secured three more years of funding from Bankwest, extending its support to 16 years. She interviewed centre director Alan Duncan, who highlighted the importance of independent research. BCEC's past work includes research on gender balance in the workplace, cited by politicians and businesses, and studies on the housing crisis and cost of living. Duncan emphasized the centre's role in combating misinformation, especially in the age of social media. Future research will continue focusing on gender balance, tax reforms, and the GST deal, with BCEC preparing findings ahead of a Productivity Commission review. The episode concludes with promotional content for the Business News app and a call to subscribe.
