Published on the 23/07/2025 | Written by Heather Wright
AI, quantum hopes…
A new $231 million public research organisation focused on ‘supercharging’ New Zealand’s economy will focus on commercialising emerging tech such as AI, quantum computing and synthetic biology,
The government says those technologies have the potential to transform industries.
The New Zealand Institute for Advanced Technology (NZIAT), alluded to earlier this year in Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s State of the Nation speech, was formally announced last week with the news it will have a central base in Auckland.
“I don’t want this to be a country where we proudly say ‘oh, we invented that’ and then someone else around the world commercialised it.”
The base will be responsible for coordinating strategy, investment and partnerships, while a broad network of investments will enable collaboration with universities, industry and other public research organisations, the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) says.
The facility will initially be incubated within MBIE, before becoming an independent entity in July 2026 when legislation comes into effect.
A research platform hosted by the Paihau-Robinson Institute in Wellington and focused on future cryogenic superconductors, magnets and materials technologies, has been confirmed as the first – $71 million over seven years – investment for the Institute.
The advanced technology science platform, hosted by the Robinson Research Institute who are based out of Victoria University, aims to grow hi-tech exports through innovations which will benefit sectors from space to fusion energy, quantum computing, aviation, medical devices and sensors, while increasing advanced tech jobs in New Zealand, MBIE says.
“The science platform brings together the expertise needed to turn innovative ideas into real-world products and services. It will support our scientists and innovators to achieve technological breakthroughs and take their ideas to market.”
The Prime Minister’s Science, Innovation and Technology Advisory Council, which includes Ministry for Primary Industries’ chief science adviser John Roche, former chief science officer to the PM, Peter Gluckman, and Halter founder Craig Piggott, will guide future investments.
Key Callaghan Innovation programs, including the Technology Incubator scheme, HealthTech Activator and New Zealand Product Accelerator, will be absorbed into the NZIAT.
In announcing the Institute, Luxon said it will be New Zealand’s fourth institute alongside the public research institutes focused on bioeconomy, earth science and public health and forensic science. Those PRI’s were formed from the merger of New Zealand’s seven crown research institutes as part of sweeping changes to the science sector.
Luxon says the NZIAT will be a cornerstone in the government’s plan to build a high tech, high value economy ‘that delivers long term prosperity for all New Zealanders and higher incomes as a result’.
“I expect it to be forward looking, with the support and advice of the science advisory council, to invest in new areas of science that are reshaping the global economy, where we can create excellent talent, create high paying jobs, build new sectors and increase our export earnings,” he says.
Science, innovation and technology minister Shane Reti says the $231 million over four years will be used to invest in science and technology that supports industries with the potential to shape New Zealand’s future; develop new skills and grow expertise in new and promising technologies; and help boost the economy by commercialising new technologies into real world businesses and products.
“New Zealand has made significant investments in areas of existing strength, like agritech, resulting in our global reputation for cutting-edge agricultural science,” Reti says.
The new institute will build on existing strengths and capabilities, and break into new technologies to grow New Zealand’s global reputation as a centre of innovation.
Luxon says while New Zealand has a history of producing incredible scientists, that isn’t enough.
“I don’t want this to be a country where we proudly say ‘oh, we invented that’ and then someone else around the world commercialised it.”
Plans to base the Institute in Auckland were welcomed by the Auckland Business Chamber, which in April put its ‘vision’ on the table for Auckland as a serious global tech hub.
Auckland mayor Wayne Brown had lobbied for Auckland to be a tech centre for New Zealand, and unsurprisingly welcomed the plans.
Last week he also announced a new industry leadership group to steer the Auckland Innovation and Technology Alliance amid a push to make Auckland a globally competitive innovation and technology hub. The leadership group – which Brown dubs a ‘delivery-focused team of proven leaders who know hot to cut through and get things done’, rather than being another talk fest – includes Peter Gluckman, NZTech’s Graeme Muller, Spark CEO Jolie Hodson, Dawn Freshwater from the University of Auckland, Mat Rowe from incubator and early stage investor Outset Ventures, ‘futurist’ Frances Valintine, and Auckland Business Chamber CEO, Auckland Tech Council founder, and former comms and economic development minister Simon Bridges.
The unveiling of the Institute follows the recent announcement of New Zealand’s first AI strategy, which received mixed reviews, and was followed this week by updated Digital Identity rulesfrom the Department of Internal Affairs.
The new Digital Identity Services Trust Framework rules will support a wider range of documents, including photo IDs, licences and qualifications and allow digital credentials to be presented online.
They also clarify that digital wallets should not just display credentials on a screen but support secure, real-time verification to keep information safe and private. Digital credentials must be checked to make sure it’s real.
And issuers can’t track a users digital ID, in a move aimed to further protect privacy, the DIA says.
Consent is mandatory, with users needing to provide explicit permission before any information is shared and with accredited digital wallets and apps, credentials remain encrypted on the user’s device and issuers have no visibility when a credential is presented.
“Technology never stands still, and neither should regulation,” says Paul James, secretary for Internal Affairs.
The new rules, which come into effect on 24 July 2025, were developed by the digital regulator in consultation with the private sector and digital identity vendors and in line with international standards and best practice, he says.
“For everyday users, the new rules mean greater choice and control.
“In future, whether renting a car, opening a bank account or accessing public services, people will be able to use trusted digital credentials residing on their own devices and presented only with their consent,” James says.
Internal Affairs reported recently that it had spent $10.5 million enabling digital identity services in the nine months to April 2025, with a budget of $34.9 million allocated in 2025.
