Hey everybody,
Hold on to your pants cause you’re gonna like this one: WellyForge #9, kindly sponsored by The MacDiarmid Institute, is happening on Tuesday, 14 July at OpenStar Technologies! This will be a huge opportunity for 40 people to glimpse into the operations of one of Aotearoa’s most exciting deep tech companies. Yes, there will be a tour ✨ and talks by Gabriel Bioletti and an awesome cohort of PhD students. And the good people at MacDiarmid have chartered a bus to take us all there and back 🚌 ⚛ 🧲
Rule #1 - Celebrate the Wins
Stave Therapeutics spins out of Malaghan+UoA, developing new cancer drugs designed to be complement existing immunotherapies!
A big milestone for BioOra’s manufacturing quest with a big investment by the Queensland Government 🦘
Nice Welly representation among those lucky Kiwis who get to go to
spaceJPL on a New Zealand Space Scholarship 🚀Andrew Rakich from KiwiStar is a finalist for an Australian Space Award 🔍
Envivo is live and selling pots! Not just any pots 🪴🌏
Tell me you’re not excited about PikPok’s latest release, Barbie: Horse Ride & Rescue! (Or at least mesmerised by all the soft pink hues).
Rule #2 - Understand Your Environment
One take on Callaghan Innovation's 2020 pandemic R&D loan fund shows that a third of the $150 million book is currently in arrears following a wave of early-stage tech liquidations. The suggestion is that it was the right path in the COVID world, but not today. Do you think that’s a fair take?
The legislative wind-up of Callaghan Innovation originally slated for June 30 has stalled in Parliament, putting the planned transfer of 176 technical staff to the new Advanced Technology Institute on temporary hold, as reported by PSA.
The gov Maritime Operations Centre has a new National Surveillance and Warning Capability to keep an eye on those submarine cables. I should say NZ-new: it’s apparently already in use in Europe, which makes it another Kiwi repatriation triumph, this time for Starboard and Kordia.
George Slim seems to feel about the justification for science cuts the way I feel about the liquidity💰/🚰 hydration breaks at the World Cup: we know what it’s for so it feels doubly patronising to be told it’s for the athletes’ wellbeing. The quote is “No funding was a deliberate choice. We didn’t need the straw man.”
More news from other small countries: Estonia is moving to become the first country to create official digital identities for AI agents, allowing them to securely execute tasks and transactions on behalf of individuals and businesses within strictly verifiable and auditable limits. Ties in well with our security expertise in Welly.
Rule #3 - Nothing Falls Thru The Gaps
Speaking of OpenStar, this is one for the Physics nerds: a new paper on Deuterium-Tritium plant design.
Andrew Chen and friends launched a parliamentary petition for mandatory AI transparency in the public sector.
Nominations are now open for election to the AgriTech New Zealand Executive Council.
Here’s to the first of many sporting and cultural events that pack the Hnry cake tin.
When AI starts speaking for education by Dr Guy Bate.
What if you offered a seminar on scams and no-one came? is some good coverage on The Post about the scamming for dummies course I posted about last week.
BRANZ highlights pushback against the Government’s plan to centralise building research funding, citing risks to industry autonomy, transparency, and continuity.
AI adoption and trust are such complicated issues, so it’s great to see nuanced coverage of a recent Ipsos poll by Amanda Williamson. Aotearoa is more scared of AI than most places.
Wellington well represented among NZ Event Awards finalists 🏆
Submit your entry to the Optimal Experience Awards.
Reminders:
Nominate someone for the 2026 Aotearoa AI Awards.
If you are studying at Vic, the International Experience Grant is open. Go learn cool stuff, come back 🙂
Wellington Tech Sector Survey takes five mins to fill, and it will quantify the presence and impact of Tech in Welly and our role in NZ more broadly.
Rule #4 - Get Inspired, Meet the Locals
Highlighted entries are new from last week.
Coming week:
Wed, June 24th, 12:30–1:30pm, AI in health: Transforming workflow and supporting the workforce, online.
Wed, June 24th, 5:30–7pm, Leading Through the AI Shift: Conversations That Matter.
Thu, June 25th, 1:30–3pm, Two Nations, One Orbit: How Australia and NZ are making their mark in the global space sector by an actual astronaut 🧑🚀
Thu, Jun 25th, 4–7pm, NZ Tech Rally 2026: Open mic evening at CreativeHQ.
Thu, Jun 25th, 4:30–6:30pm, Biotech ‘n’ Beers at Garage Project.
Tue, Jun 30th, 12pm, Modelling Rainfall-Induced Landslide Susceptibility and the Impact of Climate Change.
Jun 29th to Jul 3rd, Research Bazaar Aotearoa, free and online.
Coming eight weeks:
Thu, Jul 2nd, 12–12:45 pm, Ian Axford Fellows Report Back (Fulbright adjacent smart people).
Thu, Jul 2nd, 6–6:30pm, Generative AI, contaminated information and rhubarb, part of This Thinking Life at Massey.
Thu, Jul 2nd, 6–8:30pm, Start with the People, a Do AI × Everybody Eats fundraiser dinner.
Tue, Jul 7th, 3–4:30pm, R&D experience and career chat by Chiasma and Wellington NZ, VUW-Kelburn, specifics TBA.
Tue, Jul 7th, 5:30–6:30pm, Targeting diseases the organic way, inaugural lecture by Prof Bridget Stocker
Tue, Jul 14th, 6:00–7:30pm, Our Mysterious Brain: The Making and Breaking of Memories, Rutherford Medal talk by Prof Cliff Abraham at the Royal Society.
Mon, Jul 20th, kick off of AI for Charities course (8 weeks) by Fundsorter.
Tue, Jul 21st, 9am, BizFest 2026 in Porirua.
Thu, Jul 30th, Aurora Climate Tech Summit.
6–7 Aug, the AI Hackathon is back at AWS 🛠
Tue, Aug 11th, Digital Trust Hui Taumata at Te Papa.
Wed, Aug 12th, Shadow Tech offers girls in years 9-11 an opportunity to discover the world of tech, spark their curiosity and explore career pathways.
Aug 24–25, GEN NZ Unconference and Workshops at Rutherford House. I’ll post more about this soon 🙂
Recurring events:
The Atom at Victoria is open for any unfunded Founders (Students, Early Stage, Idea Stage) and is run by Entrepreneur in Residence, Parisa Shademan - Email [email protected], or join the Facebook community.
Mondays 8–9am, Atom - Founder Mentoring ON-LINE
Weds 12–1pm, Atom - Founder Support Drop-In Hour
Thursdays (every other) at 8am, Kapiti Start-Up Network Meet-Ups
Fridays (every other) at 5pm, Founders Meet Up at Southern Cross hosted by Jack Shennan, and Alistair St Pierre and Ruth McDavitt.