Block axes 4,000 jobs citing AI, and investors cheer
Block, owner of Square and Afterpay, is cutting 40% of its workforce — around 4,000 people — blaming AI tools. Its stock jumped 23% on the news.
Sarah Cheng Articles by Sarah Cheng
Sarah Cheng 38 Million Customer Records Exposed in ManoMano Cyber Breach
French DIY marketplace ManoMano has confirmed a January cyberattack on a customer support subcontractor exposed personal data, while a hacker claims the haul reached 38 million accounts.
Sarah Cheng 
The E-Bike That Thinks It's a Real Bike — And Almost Gets Away With It
Aventon's Soltera 3 strips the e-bike back to its bare essentials. The result is brilliant for some commuters, and a costly compromise for others.
Sarah Cheng 
Victoria Extends Shopping Centre Security Patrols Through Year's End
Victoria will extend a security crackdown at Northland, Eastland, Highpoint and Fountain Gate after a trial yielded hundreds of arrests.
Sarah Cheng 
The Scent of Memory: Why Nostalgic Fragrances Still Outsell the New
New perfumes launch every week, but Australians keep reaching for the scents that carry emotional weight. Here's why nostalgia still drives the fragrance market.
Sarah Cheng 
Australia's $100 Billion Blind Spot: Forced Labour in Our Supply Chains
A warning from Australia's Anti-Slavery Commissioner: $100 billion in imports may be linked to modern slavery, and the country is lagging badly on reform.
Sarah Cheng OpenAI Secures Pentagon Contract With Built-In AI Safeguards
OpenAI has struck a deal with the US Pentagon, with CEO Sam Altman claiming the contract includes technical safeguards to prevent misuse of its AI systems.
Sarah Cheng 
Two Struggling Giants: What a Paramount-WBD Merger Means for Viewers
Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery lost a combined $6.8 billion in 2024. Can merging fix what years of decline couldn't?
Sarah Cheng 
Block Cuts 40% of Staff, Citing AI as the Reason
Block, the fintech group behind Square, is cutting nearly half its workforce as CEO Jack Dorsey bets AI tools can replace thousands of human roles.
Sarah Cheng 
Hills Hoist Owner Flags Sale as US Parent Retreats From Australia
The US conglomerate behind the Hills Hoist clothesline is weighing a sale of its Australian operations as it refocuses on its core building products business.
Sarah Cheng 
Police footage captures Vince McMahon's high-speed highway crash
Police dashcam footage shows Vince McMahon crashing his luxury sportscar into another vehicle at 160km/h on a Connecticut highway.
Sarah Cheng 
Royal Commission Promised on Bondi Hanukkah Security Failures
Australia's police commissioner has assured Bondi families that a royal commission will scrutinise security failures during a Hanukkah event.
Sarah Cheng 
Wieambilla Massacre Site Listed for $190,000 as Police Union Talks Stall
The Wieambilla property where constables Matthew Arnold and Rachel McCrow were killed in 2022 is listed for $190,000, as police union purchase talks stall.
Sarah Cheng 
Petition Pushes to Strip Next-of-Kin Rights in DV Deaths
A growing petition wants legal powers to suspend next-of-kin rights in domestic violence cases, challenging a gap that advocates say costs lives.
Sarah Cheng 
ABC Pulls Australian Story Profile After Subject's Criminal Past Surfaces
The ABC shelved a finished Australian Story profile of Ian Williams after court records revealed a conviction for indecent assault and a prison sentence from the 1990s.
Sarah Cheng 
Teen's 2022 death confirmed as Australia's first tick-allergy fatality
Coroner confirms 16-year-old Jeremy Webb is Australia's first recorded death from tick-induced mammalian meat allergy, after eating beef sausages on a NSW camping trip.
Sarah Cheng 
World-First Victorian Trial Takes Aim at Women's Low Libido
A Monash University trial is testing testosterone cream on women aged 35 to 50, filling a gap where no approved treatment currently exists in Australia.
Sarah Cheng 
Pacgold Backs Historic SA Tailings in Profit-Share Gold Deal
Pacgold Limited has struck a profit-share deal to reprocess historical gold tailings at its Wadnaminga project in South Australia, close to White Dam.
Sarah Cheng 
UK Police End Royal Lodge Search as Andrew Investigation Widens
British police have ended their search of Royal Lodge as their investigation into Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and his links to Jeffrey Epstein continues.
Sarah Cheng 
British MPs Savage Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor in Parliament
British MPs have lined up to condemn Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor in parliament, with one minister branding his trade envoy tenure a 'constant self-aggrandising hustle'.
Sarah Cheng