Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, speaking at the University of Sydney, outlined planned regulations targeting large technology companies that build power-hungry data centers. He argued the nation should not serve merely as a storage site for foreign artificial-intelligence products. His remarks came ahead of a Labor Party conference where unions are pressing for worker protections, and amid disputes with U.S. firms like Anthropic over using Australian creative works without compensation. The proposed rules would require data-center operators to generate their own electricity, conserve water, and avoid competing with housing development for land. Tech companies including Anthropic and OpenAI offered to cooperate. Legislation is expected next year, subject to approval by state premiers. The announcement follows warnings from economists about AI’s potential economic disruption.