Australian research and innovation policy keeps funding a program and expecting an ecosystem to grow where the money lands. The two are different instruments doing different things. A competitive, time-limited, university-led grant is built for accountability and speed, while a durable, demand-led collaboration is built for density and patience. Using the Trailblazer Universities Program and the CRC record, this Insight sets out four questions that settle the choice before mo

When Senator Tim Ayres speaks of resilience, he means the capacity to keep functioning when the world does not cooperate, anchored in a robust industrial base. This Insight places that reading at the centre of the post-2020 turn in industrial policy and asks how it works alongside productivity and competitiveness. The answer lies in design: resilience investments that supply the complements firms need, and capabilities kept at home that also differentiate Australia in interna

Every occupation shortage list asks how many extra people are needed. None asks how much of the shortfall AI will absorb. The US, UK and EU now build AI assumptions into their employment projections. Australia's JSA publishes a disclaimer instead. Craig Fowler argues the SSN-AUKUS submarine build at Osborne is the proving ground: within one postcode it holds some of the least automatable trades in the economy and some of the most exposed program-office work. Net-of-AI forecas

Australia already possesses many of the institutional building blocks for a coordinated approach to place-based innovation. CSIRO, the National Reconstruction Fund, the Industry Capability Network, and the Net Zero Economy Authority all operate with distinct mandates and capabilities. The challenge is whether they can be aligned for shared regional and sectoral objectives. This Insight examines how coordination across these institutions could reshape innovation ecosystems and