The Business of Tech

Three months ago, Mark Rocket strapped in for a ride aboard Blue Origin’s New Shepard sub-orbital launch vehicle, and in the process became the first Kiwi to enter space. 

The experience was a culmination of years of anticipation and some unexpected twists for the tech entrepreneur who was a pivotal, early investor in Rocket Lab and went on to form his own venture Kea Aerospace.

Joining five other passengers on the New S...

Australia has grown wealthy by exploiting its vast mineral resources, but successive governments have also identified the need to move beyond extractive industries and have invested in science to come up with alternatives.

On The Business of Tech this week, I sit down with Dr Cathy Foley, Australia’s former Chief Scientist, and a 40-year veteran of the CSIRO, Australia’s highly respected public research institution, to ...

Amazon Web Services’ highly anticipated launch of its New Zealand cloud region unravelled this week as it nonplussed journalists and the public alike with PR spin that failed to mask the cracks in its narrative. 

In a special episode of The Business of Tech podcast to round out the week, Ben Kepes joins me to break down the blunders, highlighting misplaced numbers, poor communication, and missed opportunities to tell a g...

Nasdaq-listed tech services company Rimini Street is challenging the status quo in New Zealand’s enterprise IT market, offering a striking alternative to the upgrade treadmill set by big software vendors. 

On this week’s episode of The Business of Tech, Seth Ravin, founder and CEO of Rimini Street, and Joe Locandro, global CIO, share their vision for how New Zealand enterprises and government agencies can maintain ...

New Zealand’s workforce is bracing for the rise of artificial intelligence, but University of Auckland economist and organisational behaviour expert Dr Kenny Ching argues it’s not the jobs apocalypse many fear.

AI will reshape roles rather than eliminate them, and thanks to a resilient agriculture-based economy, the country is better positioned than most to adapt and even lead in agricultural innovation. 

“AI...

As the global race to develop quantum computers heats up, New Zealand is working on specialist areas of technology that could add crucial elements to the quantum supply chain.

That’s according to the University of Oxford’s Professor Andrew Daley, a principal investigator in the UK’s national quantum programme tasked with developing more accurate and functional quantum computers.

In the latest episode of The Busine...

As US tech companies double down on artificial intelligence, pouring billions into new data centres and offering eye-watering compensation packages to secure the best talent, a different path is emerging for New Zealand.

Catalyst Cloud co-founder Don Christie returned to The Business of Tech podcast this week to lay out his vision for sovereign AI, one where open source models and local infrastructure pave the way for the country&r...

This week's episode of The Business of Tech marks a historic moment: the 60th anniversary of Datacom, New Zealand’s largest homegrown IT company. 

I was joined by Datacom’s Group CEO Greg Davidson, who has overseen nearly two decades of remarkable change, steering the Christchurch-founded company through tidal waves of technological innovation. 

“It is older than me, I'm going to hang on to that for as l...

Concrete might be the backbone of modern society, but it comes at a steep carbon cost.

As global climate pressures intensify, the business of “greening” this essential material is heating up, and few are more determined to crack the code than Zarina Bazoeva, co-founder of Neocrete.

In the latest episode of The Business of Tech, Zarina sits down for an in-depth interview about how her New Zealand startup is tackling one ...

With Big Tech hyperscalers investing billions in local data centres and the Government taking a cloud-first stand, the migration of our data and applications to cloud platforms is in full swing.

But as David Reiss, my guest on this week’s episode of The Business of Tech, told me that moving to the cloud isn’t necessarily the panacea if you are looking to lower the ongoing costs of running your IT systems.

The co-CEO of ...

One of New Zealand’s most ambitious startups, Zenno Astronautics, is undertaking pioneering work with superconducting magnets to address one of the most pressing challenges facing humanity’s future in space - space junk.

On The Business of Tech podcast this week, Max Arshavsky, co-founder and CEO of Zenno Astronautics, charts his journey from the steppes of Siberia to the University of Auckland, where in 2017 he founded...

J.D. Trask, the Wellington-based entrepreneur behind global software success Raygun, is back with a new venture, one he believes could have an even greater impact than the internet itself. 

In the latest episode of The Business of Tech podcast, Trask sat down with me to introduce Autohive, a platform designed to make AI automation accessible for every business, not just those with deep technical resources.

Trask’s well-e...

By now, you’ve probably participated in a video conference call that’s been recorded and automatically transcribed, with a meeting summary sent to you within seconds of the meeting ending.

The likes of Teams, Otter, Zoom and Fireflies are using artificial intelligence to parse our language for insights and meaning, translating long, meandering meetings into useful summaries.

But Christchurch startup Contented AI is taki...

This week on The Business of Tech podcast, we unpack the sixth annual 2degrees Shaping Business Study, a barometer for the mood and ambitions of Kiwi business leaders as we hit the midpoint of 2025. 

The headline? Optimism is back, at its highest level since the research began, with more New Zealand companies describing themselves as thriving rather than just surviving.

Optimism on the rise

After years of economic turbulence, ...

Tracy Sheen isn’t your typical artificial intelligence guru. “I am looking forward to stirring the AI pot with you, Peter,” Sheen told me at the start of an entertaining discussion on this week’s episode of The Business of Tech. 

The award-winning Australian business coach and technology strategist has always been passionate about making technology accessible.

Her latest book AI & U: Reimagine Busin...

As chief data officer for Australia and New Zealand at Publicis Groupe, Maurice Riley stands at the intersection of data, technology, and advertising strategy.

On this week’s episode of The Business of Tech, Riley outlined the trends reshaping the advertising industry, highlighted the growing importance of the "middleverse" in customer journeys, especially during sluggish economic times, and offered practical advice for New Z...

Wellington, once a vibrant hub for New Zealand’s tech innovation, has faced stagnation in recent years. 

Last week, a packed audience at a Vision for Wellington event on Wellington’s waterfront heard from the city’s tech luminaries about how the city can embrace its strengths, particularly in technology, and foster a more supportive, connected ecosystem.

Sitting in the audience was Ralph Highnam, founder of b...

If the novelty of seeing AI-generated videos popping up in our newsfeeds has started to
wear off, Google has something new for you to feast your eyes on.

Last week, the AI giant released Veo 3, the latest version of its AI content generator. Its claim to fame? Veo 3 not only generates short video clips based on prompts from users, but also audio, syncing sound effects and character dialogue with the video.

That’s...

Litmaps, a Wellington-based startup that’s just raised $1 million in a Series A funding round, is redefining how scientists navigate the sea of academic literature by merging citation network analysis with generative AI. 

Founded in 2016 by Axton Pitt and Kyle Webster, the platform now serves over 2 million researchers globally, including institutions like Harvard, Stanford, and the University of Cambridge. Its mission? ...