The 2026 GovTech Aotearoa brought the Cyber Gov Leaders Summit and the Digi Gov Leaders Summit together under one banner, co-located in Wellington to create a shared platform for New Zealand’s most senior public sector technology and security executives.

With over 300+ attendees across both summits, the event explored how leaders can deliver modern, citizen-centric digital government securely, at pace, and at scale. The program tackled defining challenges, including the Digital Identity Services Trust Framework, the ethical scaling of AI, and the critical need to operationalize resilience by design.

On Day One, the Cyber Gov and Digi Gov communities gathered for separate sessions focused on their distinct priorities. The Cyber Gov stream featured a global perspective from Luca Tagliaretti of the European Cyber Security Competence Centre on whole-of-region resilience, while the Digi Gov stream explored Estonia’s journey toward an “Agentic State” with Dr. Ott Velsberg. Across both streams, discussions highlighted trusted digital identity, ethical AI adoption, accessibility by design, and stronger cross-agency collaboration, while emphasising that technology must serve the human element, reframing people not as risks, but as kaitiaki (guardians) of information.

On Day Two, both communities came together under a shared GovTech agenda, opening with an address from The Hon. Paul Goldsmith, Minister for Public Service and Digitising Government, who outlined the Government’s vision for a modern, efficient, and citizen-focused public sector enabled by digital transformation.

Across two days of thought-provoking keynotes, in-depth case studies, and interactive workshops, GovTech Aotearoa fostered valuable peer connections, cross-functional collaboration, and meaningful engagement with leading solution providers. Building on the momentum of 2026, GovTech Aotearoa will return to Wellington in 2027 with a clear mission: to empower New Zealand’s public sector leaders to achieve resilient growth, ethical innovation, and smarter, trusted transformation, together.