The Mike Hosking Breakfast

I've got an EV car question for you.  But first, the latest EV news.  Nissan are laying off thousands of workers, Toyota says the California regulations are unworkable, Trump has arrived, tariffs are an issue and he is anti-EV, and in Britain they are discounting EVs by a third because of rules that make manufacturers sell a certain number of EVs, and if you don’t sell that many you are fined.  Sales here are dire. Sales of petrol cars for the past month are up. Last month was the second best month of the year, apart from EVs, which sold next to none.  So, to the question - what are they going to do?  Under normal market circumstances a product lives and dies on demand.  Demands can waver and prices are adjusted accordingly, models are updated, and marketing is refreshed to fizz up demand or awareness. But ultimately, if something doesn’t have a customer base it dies.  EVs don’t appear to have a customer base. They did, to a degree, when Government's subsidised them, but that I suspect simply gave early adopters a cheaper ride.  It's not like you can't get a good deal now, but even with a cheap price they still don’t sell. People, in bulk, simply don’t want them.  What's made this unique is the manufacturers have been forced into producing something, I suspect, they knew wouldn’t work.  They would have been way quicker to bail on a failed product if they hadn't had Government's lecturing them, hectoring them, and changing the laws and forcing them into a business that looks like it's going nowhere fast.  So the question is, just what needs to be done to either increase sales or kill off the whole idea and come back another day?  You can't force people into something they don’t want and the lack of sales show this to be true.  Are they going to ban regular cars? No.  Are they going to subsidise them forever? No.  Are jobs going to be lost, bottom lines going to bleed red and factories close because of all this? Yes.  So, who blinks first? The ideologues, or the realists? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A step forward in energy production, with a Wellington company hitting a significant milestone.  The capital's OpenStar Technologies says it's created and confined plasma, allowing them to now spark fusion reactions.  It comes as New Zealand grapples with significant supply challenges in the energy market. Ratu Mataira is behind the development.  He told Mike Hosking that if they're able to scale it up, it could revolutionise the energy market.  Mataira says they're now back in the race and could beat other competitors to be the first to crack fusion energy.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Wednesday 13th of November, the gang patch ban kicks in next week, and the police have been communicating with gangs as to how the new legislation will play out. Police Assistant Commissioner Paul Basham explains how it’s being received.  A man by the name of Donald J. Trump interrupted our call with the Prime Minister yesterday, so Christopher Luxon joined Mike this morning for a chat about how the call went and the abuse in care apology.  Mark Mitchell and Ginny Andersen talk about their experience at the apology, the police in Parliament, the hikoi, and Ginny's praise from Audrey Young on Politics Wednesday.  Get the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast every weekday morning on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today on Politics Wednesday, Mark Mitchell and Ginny Andersen joined Mike Hosking to delve into some of the biggest political stories from the week thus far.  Yesterday was an emotional day for everyone as the Government offered an official apology to the survivors of abuse in state care.  Ginny Andersen was watching the livestream alongside survivors at Shed 6, which she says was a humbling experience.  She told Mike Hosking that she got the opportunity to hear some of the survivors’ experiences during the breaks, and it was a really heavy day.  Mark Mitchell says it was an important historical day for New Zealand as a country.  He told Hosking that although some people say words don’t matter, if the apology is heartfelt it does matter, and the recognition matters as well.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Christopher Luxon, New Zealand's Prime Minister, shares insights from his recent chat with Donald Trump, highlighting their warm exchange on global issues and even golf. He reveals that Trump's view of New Zealand is quite positive. Luxon also delves into the government's commitment to victims of historic abuse in care, announcing a new compensation scheme set for 2025 and a $32 million boost to support survivors. He outlines the current challenges, particularly the complex claims process involving multiple government agencies.

Auckland commuters can also expect disruption tonight as Eden Park plays host to Coldplay.  More than 50,000 people are expected to attend tonight's concert.  Extra flights and public transport services are being scheduled, but there will be heavy traffic and road closures around Eden Park this afternoon.  Chief executive Nick Sautner told Mike Hosking they're excited to be involved.  He says the tour's been running since March 2022, and after looking at rehearsals last night, he thinks it will be unforgettable.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Abuse in care survivors are united in their desire for urgent action following the Government's apology.  Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has proposed renaming streets and public amenities that are named after known abusers and establishing a National Remembrance Day.  He's also committing $32 million into the existing settlement process.  Criminal barrister Rosemary Thomson —a Lake Alice survivor— told Mike Hosking some survivors are sceptical, while others want to give the Government the benefit of the doubt.  She says everyone agrees redress is urgent, as the survivors are getting older, and generally aren't in good health.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Police units around the country will be taking a proactive approach to the Government's new gang patch ban.  Patches and insignia will be banned in public places from Thursday next week.  Police Assistant Commissioner Paul Basham says Police have been speaking with gang leaders, and have made it clear that anyone breaching the law can expect a response.  He told Mike Hosking that dedicated units will respond to reports of law-breaking, gather intelligence, and work with other branches of Police.  He says they'll also take opportunities to reduce the ability of gangs to operate, and cause fear and intimidation.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We are not unique, but we are most definitely different from the way we were.  Once again we are into exam season, and once again we have the flurry of stories of questions that can't be answered, the tears that flow, and the end of the world that is ensuing.  For comfort, the same number of stories are floating about the place currently in Australia.  For context, the last time I did exams these tears and high drama were nowhere to be seen.  So what has happened? Is it possible the way we study has changed?  Is it possible all the mocks that are taken lead you into an area of confusion, whereby unless the real exam looks remarkably similar to the ones you have just practiced on, you freak out?  Is it possible because of the way we teach, it's too rote? In other words, you can parrot back what has been taught but you can't extrapolate out?  Is it also possible that exams and entry to university has become such a big deal that the whole of the future of your life is flashing in front of your eyes, and unless it appears to have gone well you have no future?  Perhaps my advantage was that I wasn’t going to university. I was out into the world to get on with it.  What I needed was University Entrance, preferably endorsed, and that would give me, at the very least, a foot in the door to a job.  Yes, exams seemed hard. Yes, a lot of people were nervous.  Yes, a lot of people after the exam, as we wandered off home, either ran the line that it was a nightmare and they don’t stand a chance, or that it was so easy they couldn’t believe their luck. And we ran those lines no matter what had actually just happened.  We were full of it.  But what we didn’t do was melt down, the media didn’t cover the fallout, and we had no headlines. We were simply kids doing exams and sometimes they went well and sometimes they didn’t.  I wish I knew then what I know now – that school is but a fleeting moment in time that will seem increasingly irrelevant. Although it's your whole world, or at least a decent chunk of it, when you are a kid, ultimately it will all be put into perspective.  Life and its success is rarely, if ever, defined by what you did in year 12 or 13.  Maybe we could teach more of that. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

AI is going to change the world – or is it?  The world of artificial intelligence has been booming, with major corporations and small businesses alike integrating the software into their work.  Tom Gruber is one of the minds behind Siri, the iconic virtual personal assistant purchased by Apple in 2010.  He’s now an entrepreneur and co-founder of another company, an adaptive music company called LifeScore.  Gruber told Mike Hosking that compared to some other major technological advances, AI is likely to be on the more transformative end.   “It’s omni-purpose,” he said.  “You can do all kinds of things, pretty much anything involving language on the input and language on the output, with this new technology.”  “It cuts across all vertical industries.”  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.