The energy sector is pointing to international evidence to back axing the Lake Onslow pumped hydro scheme.

Energy Minister Simeon Brown says the 16-billion-dollar project, was pouring money down the drain, at a time when we need to be reining in spending.

He says axing the scheme will increase confidence to invest in more energy production.

Energy Resources Aotearoa John Carnegie told Tim Dower that Australia's Snowy 2.0 is enough evidence to show it wouldn't have delivered for Kiwis.



LISTEN ABOVE

The energy sector is pointing to international evidence to back axing the Lake Onslow pumped hydro scheme.
Energy Minister Simeon Brown says the 16-billion-dollar project, was pouring money down the drain, at a time when we need to be reining in spending.
He says axing the scheme will increase confidence to invest in more energy production.
Energy Resources Aotearoa John Carnegie told Tim Dower that Australia's Snowy 2.0 is enough evidence to show it wouldn't have delivered for Kiwis.
 
LISTEN ABOVE

A fresh and intelligent start to your day - catch the very latest international and domestic news developments, sport, entertainment and business on Early Edition with Ryan Bridge, on Newstalk ZB.

A fresh and intelligent start to your day - catch the very latest international and domestic news developments, sport, entertainment and business on Early Edition with Ryan Bridge, on Newstalk ZB.

Early Edition with Ryan Bridge

John Carnegie: "Better ways" to spend $16B than Onslow Pumped Hydro Scheme

On the Early Edition with Ryan Bridge Full Show Podcast Wednesday 2nd of September 2026 another OCR hike is looking likely from the Reserve Bank, Westpac chief Economist Kelly Eckhold tells Ryan what we can expect.

New Zealand and America are teaming up to build a port for the Cook Islands; international relations professor Robert Patman shares his thoughts.

Netball New Zealand have made the decision to privatise the domestic league; former Silver Fern Marg Foster reacts to the news.

Plus, UK/Europe Correspondent Gavin Grey has the latest on laundry rooms being turned into prison cells to combat overcrowding in UK jails and an investigation underway after a man died near Notting Hill Carnival in London following a police pursuit. 

Get the Early Edition Full Show Podcast every weekday on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.          

LISTEN ABOVE  

On the Early Edition with Ryan Bridge Full Show Podcast Wednesday 2nd of September 2026 another OCR hike is looking likely from the Reserve Bank, Westpac chief Economist Kelly Eckhold tells Ryan what we can expect.
New Zealand and America are teaming up to build a port for the Cook Islands; international relations professor Robert Patman shares his thoughts.
Netball New Zealand have made the decision to privatise the domestic league; former Silver Fern Marg Foster reacts to the news.
Plus, UK/Europe Correspondent Gavin Grey has the latest on laundry rooms being turned into prison cells to combat overcrowding in UK jails and an investigation underway after a man died near Notting Hill Carnival in London following a police pursuit.&nbsp;
Get the Early Edition Full Show Podcast every weekday on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;
LISTEN ABOVE &nbsp;

Full Show Podcast: 02 September 2026 

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/7784f840-c291-422a-924b-ad9000bbad71/clips/c02347d2-7e53-4d2f-800f-b4b801513e23/transcript

The US appears to be re-engaging with the Pacific as it invests in Cook Islands infrastructure.

New Zealand's pledged to co-invest with the US to build a port on the Penrhyn atoll in the Cooks, a former military base.

China had been interested in seabed mining in the area.

Otago University International Relations expert Robert Patman told Ryan Bridge the Trump administration hasn't shown a lot of interest in the Pacific until now.

He says what it is interested in is combatting China, so this is an incentive for them to get back to being much more active in the region.

PM Christopher Luxon is travelling to Palau for the Pacific Islands Forum today.

LISTEN ABOVE

The US appears to be re-engaging with the Pacific as it invests in Cook Islands infrastructure.
New Zealand's pledged to co-invest with the US to build a port on the Penrhyn atoll in the Cooks, a former military base.
China had been interested in seabed mining in the area.
Otago University International Relations expert Robert Patman told Ryan Bridge the Trump administration hasn't shown a lot of interest in the Pacific until now.
He says what it is interested in is combatting China, so this is an incentive for them to get back to being much more active in the region.
PM Christopher Luxon is travelling to Palau for the Pacific Islands Forum today.
LISTEN ABOVE

Robert Patman: Otago University International Relations expert on the US re-engaging with the Pacific

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/7784f840-c291-422a-924b-ad9000bbad71/clips/02024133-63b3-4a10-b4fa-b4b8012bac7c/transcript

IP lawyers will be licking their lips with all these AI cases landing on their desks. 

The latest, we spoke about yesterday, was Sony and Warner going after Anthropic. 

Their argument is basically that Anthropic's AI models, the ones we use to get answers to questions, scrape and bottom trawl the internet for information. 

That information, including song lyrics, is often IP owned and produced by humans or companies. 

So, scraping it and using it to sell as a product is theft. 

Media companies in New Zealand take a similar view. 

If the robot is scraping content produced, at cost, by a news business, then how is that not also theft?

But if you think about it, humans do this all the time. I do it every day. It's actually what I'm paid to do. 

I ingest large amounts of information and then use it to inform interviews and content. 

Lawyers do it for legal cases. Politicians do it. Businesses do it. We all do it in one way or another. 

And we all use the information the internet provides for our own purposes. Usually, to make money. 

Knowledge is power and content is king. 

So, the question then becomes, what is the difference between us doing this and using this information and an AI model doing the same?

Surely Claude is committing no greater crime than the rest of us. 

Of course, how they get their hands on the information is key. 

If you're ripping it off bit torrent, then you might have other problems. But if you're getting it from a paid subscription, isn't that what we do? 

In the news business you credit your sources. But not always. There's a point where the collective weight of the information you've consumed becomes your own thoughts and your own IP. 

Are robots any different? 

IP lawyers will be licking their lips with all these AI cases landing on their desks.&nbsp;
The latest, we spoke about yesterday, was Sony and Warner going after Anthropic.&nbsp;
Their argument is basically that Anthropic's AI models, the ones we use to get answers to questions, scrape and bottom trawl the internet for information.&nbsp;
That information, including song lyrics, is often IP owned and produced by humans or companies.&nbsp;
So, scraping it and using it to sell as a product is theft.&nbsp;
Media companies in New Zealand take a similar view.&nbsp;
If the robot is scraping content produced, at cost, by a news business, then how is that not also theft?
But if you think about it, humans do this all the time. I do it every day. It's actually what I'm paid to do.&nbsp;
I ingest large amounts of information and then use it to inform interviews and content.&nbsp;
Lawyers do it for legal cases. Politicians do it. Businesses do it. We all do it in one way or another.&nbsp;
And we all use the information the internet provides for our own purposes. Usually, to make money.&nbsp;
Knowledge is power and content is king.&nbsp;
So, the question then becomes, what is the difference between us doing this and using this information and an AI model doing the same?
Surely Claude is committing no greater crime than the rest of us.&nbsp;
Of course, how they get their hands on the information is key.&nbsp;
If you're ripping it off bit torrent, then you might have other problems. But if you're getting it from a paid subscription, isn't that what we do?&nbsp;
In the news business you credit your sources. But not always. There's a point where the collective weight of the information you've consumed becomes your own thoughts and your own IP.&nbsp;
Are robots any different?&nbsp;

Ryan Bridge: Is this really AI theft?

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/7784f840-c291-422a-924b-ad9000bbad71/clips/49c866af-b897-4f58-a6a3-b4b8012ac1f8/transcript

John Carnegie: "Better ways" to spend $16B than Onslow Pumped Hydro Scheme

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