New NZIAT Chief Says Focus on Key Bets and Dropping Underperformers Will Help Tech Growth

Published 2026-10-25

Roman Reyhani, the new chief executive of the New Zealand Institute for Advanced Technology (NZIAT), has set out his early priorities for the organisation. He says he is not expecting New Zealand to produce the next OpenAI, the American artificial intelligence company behind ChatGPT. Instead, he believes the country has strong potential in specific areas, especially agritech, which uses technology to improve farming and food production.

Mr Reyhani's main message is that NZIAT should make focused bets rather than spreading its support across many projects. In his view, the organisation should choose a smaller number of areas with the best chance of success and put more resources into them. This approach means that projects which are not performing well should be stopped, so that money and staff time can go to more promising work.

For New Zealand, this idea matters because the country depends heavily on agriculture and food exports. Developing new technology in farming could help producers become more productive and more efficient, which can be important for the wider economy. At the same time, a focused strategy means that the country is not trying to compete with every large global technology company, but is instead concentrating on fields where it already has know-how and natural strengths.

NZIAT's new direction shows how the institute is planning to use its limited resources in the coming years. Mr Reyhani's comments suggest that the organisation will be more selective about what it funds and supports. Readers who want to follow the progress of New Zealand's technology sector may wish to watch how these changes are carried out and which projects are chosen to continue.

Sources: National Business Review

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