NSW Data Centres: New South Wales rolled out a Data Centre Policy Framework that speeds approvals for projects meeting standards (planning assessment targeted within 75 days) while pushing developers to fund extra energy and water infrastructure as AI demand drives massive new electricity needs. AI for SMBs (and the fine print): MYOB is bringing “financial insights” into Claude and ChatGPT so owners can ask questions about balances, overdue invoices, and profit-and-loss using their real MYOB data. AI outreach backlash: Anthropic says Claude now embeds an invisible watermark in generated text under the EU AI Act—meaning AI-drafted cold emails may be detectable, just as reply rates keep sliding. Payments push in Africa: Mastercard teamed with TeamApt to expand digital payment acceptance across Africa, aiming to help MSMEs and informal businesses process transactions across channels. Disaster recovery support: Mississippi’s MEMA will open five Disaster Service Centers for Tropical Storm Arthur damage, with FEMA and SBA loan specialists on hand for homeowners and businesses. SMB lending competition: Australia’s banking industry says stronger competition is lowering loan margins and speeding approvals, with credit outstanding at record levels. Cyber risk: Kaspersky warns AI agents are creating new malware risks and that many compromises go undetected for months—an SMB wake-up call.