Please log in to bookmark this story. Log In Create Free Account Welcome back to Lately, The Globe’s weekly tech newsletter. If you have feedback or just want to say hello to a real-life human, send me an e-mail. In this week’s issue: ⛔ Australia bans social media for children under 16 🐭 Mickey Mouse is coming to Sora 🛻 Canadian driverless truck startup reaches US$3-billion valuation 👽 One of the best new shows of 2025 is an alien sci-fi thriller SOCIAL MEDIA Australia bans social media for children under 16 This week, Australia became the first country to ban social media for children under 16, blocking access to TikTok, YouTube, Reddit, X, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat and Twitch. Under the new law, tech companies that fail to cut off underage teens will face fines up to AUS$50-million (roughly $46-million). The government first proposed the landmark law citing research showing the connection between social media and online harms, such as bullying, misinformation and unhealthy depictions of body image. Despite concerns from privacy and civil rights experts – as well as teens who say the ban will lead to social isolation – many other countries, such as Denmark, New Zealand and Malaysia, have signalled they’re interested in introducing similar legislation. In Canada, Quebec is also considering setting a minimum age for social media, following a push from the youth wing of the governing Coalition Avenir Québec. A survey from 2024 showed that 71 per cent of adults in the province supported a ban for minors. Are you reading this newsletter on the web or did someone forward the e-mail to you? If so, you can sign up for the Lately newsletter . DRIVERLESS VEHICLES Open this photo in gallery: Raquel Urtasun, CEO and Founder of Waabi, is aiming for their trucks to be driverless by the end of the year.Christopher Katsarov/The Globe and Mail The Toronto-based driverless trucking startup Waabi is in advanced talks to raise one of the largest financings ever by an early-stage Canadian technology company. It is expected to close a financing deal that could exceed US$750-million as soon as this month, valuing Waabi at US$3-billion. Before founding Waabi four years ago, Raquel Urtasun worked as the chief scientist at Uber’s self-driving division. Waabi partnered with Uber Freight, a logistics platform that connects shippers and carriers, in 2023 to make commercial deliveries between Dallas and Houston with a safety driver at the wheel who could intervene if necessary. Urtasun has set a goal of Waabi going fully driverless by the end of this year. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE Open this photo in gallery: You will soon be able to make unhinged AI videos with Mickey Mouse.PHILIP CHEUNG/The New York Times Sora app users will soon be able to make AI-generated videos featuring Mickey Mouse, Yoda, Elsa and the rest of the Disney clan, thanks to a new deal between OpenAI and the entertainment giant. As part of the three-year agreement, Disney will take a $1-billion stake in OpenAI and license its characters for use on the Sora platform. The deal was unexpected, given that Disney has sued other AI companies around its intellectual property. Disney sued Midjourney for allowing users to create images that “blatantly incorporate and copy” their characters. And this week, Disney accused Google of copyright infringement, demanding the company stop using its content, including The Lion King and Guardians of the Galaxy, to train its AI models. The company has sent similar cease-and-desist letters to Meta and Character.AI. Animators were quick to criticize the deal. In an interview with the New York Times , Roma Murphy, who sits on the Animation Guild’s executive board, said that the “The artists who created these characters won’t see a dime.” What else we’re reading this week: Source: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/article-lately-australia-bans-social-media-disney-sora-pluribus/