Time is now for Wellington to join the AI revolution
Wellington's public sector cuts are now biting, and at the same time, the $450 million Science Park planned for the region has been canned. So, it’s easy enough to look at Wellington through a glass halfempty lens.
In contrast, the Minister of Finance is upbeat about Wellington’s prospects and, in particular, the economic growth potential related to the film, IT, and tertiary sectors.
However, these sectors are exactly the type likely to be radically disrupted by AI. We need to make sure we do not assume past success will necessarily ensure success in a radically changed future.
Given all of this, Wellington could potentially seize an opportunity around AI. Now is the time to get very specific about scenarios as to how it could do this.
The renowned business strategist Michael Porter pointed to the importance of “clusters” in economic development. These are collections of critical mass in one place of unusual competitive success in particular fields. Could Wellington develop an AI cluster? How could this work in practice?
When you are building any type of cluster, you need to grow skills, capability, capacity, IP, entrepreneurial enthusiasm, networks, synergies and cross-sector collaboration. So, imagine this as a possible scenario for AI in Wellington.
First, a really creative approach could be taken to promoting synergies between those involved in AI development in the region. From our current networking in Wellington, there does not yet seem to be nearly enough cross-fertilisation between the private sector, the tertiary and research sector, and the government sector regarding AI.
Next, in regard to government, the public sector is undergoing one of its periodic downsizings. However, it will continue to be a huge sector in New Zealand, with a significant portion of its work located in Wellington.
The current administration wants to make government more efficient, and inevitably, they will be looking to AI to help with this either with new investment or reallocation of resources. Why shouldn’t the government consider how such dollars spent could also help to grow the private sector, tertiary, and research AI capacity and capability?
Another angle on government and AI is to consider New Zealand’s small size and, when compared to other governments, its ability to move swiftly. It could provide a place to pilot the use of AI in the provision of government services as a collaborative activity between AI companies, government, startups, civil society, Māori, universities, and other researchers.
This could be linked to the government’s interest in social investment to improve social outcomes. We know that public servants are already looking into AI and they could potentially move rapidly on this.
Moving on to the sectors highlighted by the Minister of Finance, AI is clearly going to disrupt the film, IT and tertiary sectors. We need to talk and think urgently in Wellington about how New Zealand could be at the cutting edge of such disruption in these sectors and how to benefit from it.
Let’s also not forget about our traditional economic engines, such as agriculture and tourism. We have a great deal of expertise in these areas, and we should seek to also become early adopters of AI in these spaces.
Another possibility is to work out if we could carve out some value from addressing the coming likely crisis regarding AI’s environmental footprint. Could New Zealand's significant current and potential green energy sources be used to develop AI server farms in New Zealand fuelled with green energy?
In the entrepreneurial space, can
New Zealand sell itself as a place for AI startups? Given the ongoing issues within US governance plus current geopolitical turmoil, could some AI startups be enticed to locate themselves in NZ?
Wellington should also be very active in exploring the science and AI area. The region has several tertiary research institutions, in addition to the Callaghan Institute and some private research groups. AI is rapidly revolutionising scientific research. These research centres will already be thinking about it, but they need to move really fast to collectively catch some of the AI science wave.
In addition, various possibilities exist regarding AI’s deployment by civil society and Māori and they are starting to explore AI's possibilities in ways that work for them.
Lastly, attention needs to be paid to the current public narrative about AI. A key message here is that AI is coming for all of us, regardless of whether we like it or not. The only viable strategy in the face of this is to attempt to get on top of it and to push for responsible and pro-social uses of AI.
The Minister of Science, Innovation and Technology, Judith Collins, is already scoping out ideas for how New Zealand can catch the AI wave. There is the potential for an agile New Zealand government to balance AI safety and innovation and move rapidly on this.
The Capital’s Economic Development Agency, Wellington NZ is also active in the AI area and its work can be built on.
Taking a regional approach to fostering the opportunities provided by AI in Wellington could also be used to pilot ideas that might be of use to other regions as we all gear up for the AI future.
The AI revolution is moving fast. There’s only a very small window for Wellington and New Zealand to grasp what is happening with AI and ensure that we get some of the action.