Leveraging New Zealand’s Science, Innovation and Technology System
As well as focussing on adoption of AI in the public and private sectors, New Zealand will lean into its strengths in the Science, Innovation and Technology (SI&T) system with respect to AI development.
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New Zealand has a longstanding track record in this area; in 1996 the University of Waikato released WEKA, an
open-source tool for machine learning and data mining. WEKA is still in use today, despite being one of the oldest available machine learning systems. It is referenced in over 25,000 research and science publications.
Changes to the Science, Innovation and Technology System
The Government is focussed on creating a more dynamic SI&T system that can respond to priorities, keep pace with technological advances, and help grow the economy. In January 2025, it announced the most significant reset of New Zealand’s SI&T system in more than 30 years.
As part of reshaping New Zealand’s Crown Research Institutes, a new advanced technology public research organisation (PRO) will be created to deliver research, capability and commercial outreach, including on AI.
This investment into advanced tech aims to boost high-tech exports and generate high value jobs. The Government has already taken the first step with a $71m investment into a new advanced technology science platform hosted by the Robinson Research Institute. This platform aims to grow New Zealand’s high-tech exports based on cryogenics, superconductors, magnets and processed materials.
The Government has also announced plans to introduce a national policy for the management of IP in universities and PROs, which will help bring new technologies, including AI, to market.
Putting investments to work in science, innovation and technology
Each year, $1.2b of government funding is invested in the SI&T system. The Government is considering how to optimise these investments to deliver greater value for all New Zealanders. A range of mechanisms will provide opportunities for researchers to develop and apply AI, addressing priorities set by the Prime Minister’s new Science Innovation and Technology Advisory Council, including:
- Supporting research to enable New Zealand’s scientists to explore novel use cases for AI technologies applied to priority research such as biomedical sciences, quantum physics and environmental monitoring, via the Marsden Fund – New Zealand’s premier fund for investigator research.
- Strengthening international collaborations to benefit New Zealand’s economy, environment and society, via the Catalyst Fund, which sets AI as one of six research priority areas for the 2024-2028 period.
- Supporting businesses and other organisations to innovate, through the Research and Development Tax Incentive (RDTI), which offers a tax credit of 15% on eligible expenditure. Already, the total estimated spend of AI-related projects since 2019, based on approved RDTI projects, sits at $611m.