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8 Aug 2025

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Andrew Mercer pleads guilty to manslaughter after partner's fall from trailer
Robert Ralston died in hospital more than two weeks after the fall in Dunedin in late March.

Strong demand for apples sees T&G Global return to profit
The Envy variety had a strong growing season.

GigaChat AI assistant achieves 93% accuracy in medical diagnoses
SberHealth’s GigaChat AI assistant achieved 93% accuracy diagnosing 30 clinical cases, outperforming rivals and showing promise for healthcare and training.

Watercare installs smart sensors for edge-powered sewer monitoring
Watercare is installing 5,000 Kallipr smart sensors across Auckland to enhance real-time sewage monitoring and reduce overflows with edge-powered technology.

Why exception reporting is essential for growth ready finance teams
Exception reporting is now vital for finance teams, providing real-time alerts on anomalies to prevent costly delays and breaches, boosting business growth.

Flying into Sydney Airport has just got a little less annoying
Especially if you’ve forgotten to bring a pen.

Police investigation launched after unexplained death in Auckland's Parnell
A woman was found unresponsive inside an apartment block unit in Parnell last night.

OpenAI debuts GPT-5, paving the way for an even smarter ChatGPT
OpenAI on Thursday announced GPT-5, the foundational model for the next generation of ChatGPT and a “significant leap in intelligence,” according to the company. GPT-5 will be released in two versions, a “pro” model which will only be accessible to paid subscribers, and the basic GPT-5, which will actually be available to everyone, even those on ChatGPT’s free plan. Plus subscribers will get more usage, OpenAI said. Interestingly, OpenAI won’t explicitly make which model ChatGPT is using available to ChatGPT users. An interesting feature of the new GPT-5 is a “real-time router” which will assign a model based on the query the user asks. If you use the terms “think hard about this,” ChatGPT might see it as a signal that a more complex model needs to be used. One “efficient” model may be used for most questions, with a deeper, thinking model available if needed. Apparently, there’s a “mini” version as well that will kick in if a user exceeds the usage rates. “We’ve made significant advances in reducing hallucinations, improving instruction following, and minimizing sycophancy, while leveling up GPT-5’s performance in three of ChatGPT’s most common uses: writing, coding, and health,” OpenAI said in a blog post. One area of expertise is coding, where ChatGPT and GPT-5 can now create entire websites and games with just a single prompt, OpenAI said, while surpassing many of its previous levels of expertise in health, too. Our sister site, TechCrunch, has a lot more on GPT-5.

Councillor says safety not prioritised as Wellington waterfront fence voted down
The proposal came after a coroner's report into the death of Sandy Calkin..

Man accused of killing Nelson police officer Lyn Fleming named as Hayden Tasker
A High Court justice has revoked the man's name suppression.

Cogo launches energy tool to help homes & cars cut costs
Cogo launches a new tool in the UK, Australia and New Zealand to help homes and vehicles cut energy costs with personalised efficiency advice.

Infratil, NZ Super Fund to sell RetireAustralia for $925m
The global real estate investment business, Invesco, is the buyer with Infratil expecting proceeds of about $328m for its 50 percent stake.

Five ways AI is reshaping finance talent, and how CFOs are responding
AI is transforming finance talent, pushing CFOs to prioritise AI literacy, hybrid roles and culture to unlock real business value.

Webinar: What CFOs can learn from Kieser outgrowing Xero
Kieser streamlined finance by replacing 27 Xero accounts with one NetSuite system, cutting month-end closes from 25 days to three for faster growth.

Parklands homicide: Forensic psychiatrist will assess man accused of murder
A man accused of stabbing a woman to death in the east Christchurch suburb is to be assessed by a forensic psychiatrist to inform his ability to plead and stand trial.

NZ on Air fund reality TV - did they put their money in the right place?
NZ On Air has announced close to $2.8 million of taxpayer money is slated for local productions Celebrity Treasure Island and The Traitors NZ - a first for the competitive reality series.