Defence & Security Podcast Network

Defence Connect relaunches our podcast with co-host Phil Tarrant, joined by news editor Robert Dougherty, to discuss the latest developments shaping Australia's defence industry.

The pair discuss defence spending, AUKUS, sovereign capability, emerging technologies, and the growing strategic importance of Western Australia.
The podcast conversation includes the following topics:
Australia's defence spending trajectory and the importance of export opportunities.
AUKUS and opportunities for Australian companies across the trilateral supply chain.
The strategic significance of Western Australia and its growing defence infrastructure.
The People's Republic of China, Taiwan, and the evolving regional security environment.
Austal and the importance of maintaining sovereign shipbuilding capability.
New missile and air-defence capabilities, including JASSM-ER, LRASM, and NASAMS.
The rise of drones, autonomy and new approaches to defence innovation.
Project AIR 6500 and the development of a more integrated battlefield network.
The potential role of deployable microreactors for military and space applications.
Enjoy the podcast,
The Defence Connect team

Phil Tarrant and Major General (Ret'd) Dr Marcus Thompson examine the growing debate over Australia's economic direction, drawing on Chris Uhlmann's recent article in The Australian on the "Argentinisation" of Australia.

They unpack the risks posed by weak productivity, rising regulation, higher costs, and falling investment – and ask what sustained economic underperformance could mean for housing, business confidence, and the nation's broader strategic strength.

Because if Australia enters an increasingly contested world from a position of economic weakness, its ability to fund defence, build sovereign capability, and protect its national interests becomes a much bigger question.

Australia's emerging defence technology priorities will only deliver their full potential if they are integrated into a broader operational framework connecting platforms, people, data and decision making, according to Microsoft global defence and intelligence solutions manager Jonathon Beesley and Atturra defence lead Richard Campbell, chief executive officer of SME Gateway.

The 2026 Defence Innovation, Science and Technology Strategy identifies long-range fires and hypersonics, high-energy lasers, autonomous systems, quantum, artificial intelligence and undersea warfare as key priorities.
But translating these capabilities into an integrated force will require Defence to look beyond individual platforms and focus on the architecture connecting sensors, command nodes, decision makers and shooters.
Cloud technology can provide the backbone for this integration, enabling Defence to process the growing volume, variety and velocity of data reaching commanders and personnel at the tactical edge.
AI and autonomous systems can then help fuse that information and provide decision advantage, but humans must remain responsible for critical decisions. Building trust in these systems will be essential, particularly as Defence operates increasingly complex joint and coalition missions.
Australia also cannot be self-reliant in every capability. Instead, it must identify where sovereign control is essential while maintaining secure interoperability with trusted allies.
The experience of Ukraine has demonstrated the value of rapidly adopting and adapting technology, highlighting the importance of a defence culture capable of learning at pace.
For Australia, the next advantage may therefore be a learning advantage; ensuring Defence and industry can understand, adopt and adapt emerging technologies quickly enough to meet the strategic challenges ahead.
Enjoy the podcast,
The Defence Connect Spotlight team

Australia's defence industry faces a period of growing consolidation and uncertainty, how is past procurement impacting national security of the future?

Speaking with Defence Connect news editor Robert Dougherty, 127 East Advisory director Colin Storey, a former head of growth at Raytheon and Royal Australian Navy patrol boat navigator, discusses his analysis of major defence contracts awarded over the past decade and what the data reveals about Australia's defence industrial base.
Storey's analysis of 373 contracts found more than 27 per cent went directly through foreign military sales, while more than half of the remaining contracts went to foreign-owned companies operating in Australia.
Of the Australian-owned businesses receiving major contracts, much of the spending was concentrated in areas such as infrastructure, facilities and fuel, with Austal emerging as the only Australian-owned defence specialist among the top 20 recipients.
The pair also discuss the gradual offshore consolidation of Australia's defence industry, with major international primes acquiring at least 16 Australian companies over the past four decades.
Combined with the growing cost of major programs and the funding demands of AUKUS, Storey warns this approach could place further pressure on established defence companies, with some potentially reconsidering their long-term presence in Australia.
The pair examine how countries including Sweden, Norway, Finland and Israel have developed successful defence companies by aligning procurement with national priorities, supporting specialised sovereign capabilities and helping domestic firms access export markets.
Looking towards the next decade, Storey expects further consolidation across the Australian defence industry, alongside increased mergers and acquisitions as companies compete for a smaller number of major programs. Australia risks developing a narrower and less resilient defence industrial base unless procurement, sovereign capability and export policy are more closely aligned with the nation's long-term defence strategy, he warns.
Enjoy the podcast,
The Defence Connect team

Australia's push to develop autonomous ground systems has delivered promising prototypes and live-fire demonstrations, but land-based autonomy remains outside the Australian Defence Force's current priorities.

Speaking with news editor Robert Dougherty, Sightline Intelligence managing director Stephen Bornstein discusses the challenges facing Australia's emerging uncrewed ground vehicles sector and the growing importance of low-cost autonomous systems.
Cyborg Dynamics Engineering's Warfighter UGV progressed from a Queensland-developed platform into a military system, including live-fire Javelin and minigun trials in 2023. However, Bornstein says industry was already aware that land autonomy was being deprioritised ahead of the Defence Strategic Review.
By late 2023, Cyborg had pivoted towards firefighting and research applications, using those markets to continue developing the underlying technology.
Bornstein argues that while UGVs continue to appear at exercises and innovation programs, current funding remains largely experimental rather than sufficient to deliver a major land capability.
The pair also discuss Athena AI's integration into Sightline Intelligence and its subsequent acquisition by Acron Technologies; the company gained access to US opportunities that would have been difficult for an Australian-only business to pursue.
Looking towards Land Forces, Bornstein expects continued growth in lower-cost, disposable and attritable UGVs, alongside AI-enabled systems incorporating computer vision, terminal guidance and aided target recognition.
For Australia's defence industry, the challenge remains turning promising autonomous technologies from experimental projects into scalable, operational capabilities.
Enjoy the podcast,
The Defence Connect team