The Ultimate Guide to Generative AI
A curated Kiwi edition of TechDay news, analysis, interviews, reviews, job moves, and related resources for Generative AI (GenAI).
What to know about Generative AI
Generative AI is reshaping the digital landscape by powering advances across industries with its ability to create content, assist decision-making, and automate processes. From enhancing customer experience platforms and streamlining business workflows to transforming healthcare and cybersecurity, generative artificial intelligence is driving innovation and operational efficiency at an unprecedented scale.
Businesses and organisations are increasingly adopting generative AI technologies to harness its potential benefits, while also grappling with challenges such as data privacy, security risks, ethical considerations, and the need for robust governance. As generative AI solutions become core components of enterprise strategies, understanding their capabilities and implications is vital for staying competitive in today’s rapidly evolving digital economy.
Our stories explore practical deployments, emerging trends, and expert insights on generative AI’s impact across sectors, helping readers navigate its opportunities and challenges. Whether you are interested in the latest AI-driven product innovations, policy developments, or strategies for successful AI integration, this collection offers comprehensive information to keep you informed about the pivotal role of generative AI in transforming businesses and society.
Kiwi Generative AI News
Regional stories with direct local relevance
Young people say AI is eroding trust online, report finds
Generative AI and scams are making many rangatahi doubt what they see online, even as reliable internet remains vital for school, work and services.
It took 20 years to start regulating social media - will AI controls come sooner?
Public pressure for AI guardrails is surging faster than it did for social media, as Australia joins a growing coalition urging action.
The smartest AI will help us use less, not just do more
The technology's next test is whether it can cut energy use and waste as firms face growing pressure to deploy AI more responsibly.
Halter's Clank AI cuts engineering time in farm tech
Farming customers could see faster fixes as the system now handles alert triage and code changes, saving more than 215 engineering hours.
New Zealand firms split on AI as strategy gap widens
Only 15% of New Zealand businesses have an AI strategy, leaving most unable to measure returns or prepare for the next wave of tools.
AI shrinks exploit window to zero days, ESET warns
Businesses have almost no time to patch flaws now, as ESET says the median gap between disclosure and exploitation fell to zero days in 2026.
Analyst Insights
Research and market analysis connected to Generative AI
Fortinet: The AI challenge is visibility and control, not permission
Exabeam adds AI tools for agentic security operations
AI coding tools shift developers towards review work
Cloudera named leader in Asia Pacific sovereign AI
ABBYY launches FineParser for enterprise AI document parsing
Featured News
The future of successful HR will use AI with human oversight
AI could free HR teams from routine admin, but Workday says sensitive hiring decisions need deterministic guardrails and explicit human oversight.
AI attacks demand operational change in the post Mythos era
Only 5% of Australian companies are ready for AI-driven attacks, leaving most exposed as threat actors move at machine speed.
Celonis banking head: Banks want proof before scaling agents
Celonis argues frontier AI models are too generic for regulated banking, urging firms to weigh cost, risk and process gains before scaling deployments.
Interview: Cloudera says AI agents reshape zero trust
Enterprises must update identity controls as software agents generate more requests and need tightly time-limited access to sensitive systems.
Interview: Cloudera says open-ended AI spending is over
Enterprises are now demanding proof of value and tighter controls as AI budgets face scrutiny over compute costs and deployment choices.
Exclusive: ABBYY says AI build costs will drive buying
Enterprises could cut AI spend by up to 80% by shifting document workflows away from custom builds and into standard platforms.
Exclusive: ABBYY brings zero-shot document AI to Vantage
Enterprises can now extract data from unseen document types without templates, as ABBYY rolls out zero-shot capabilities in Vantage.
Exclusive: ABBYY launches hybrid AI document models
Enterprises under pressure to curb AI risk and cost are being given a hybrid option that blends generative models with OCR and rules-based extraction.
Why businesses need more than technology to scale AI
Only 19 per cent of enterprise AI use cases hit most or all goals, as Infosys urges firms to pair technology with data, training and governance.
Interview: Cloudera bets on hybrid AI growth in JAPAC
Banks and large enterprises in Asia-Pacific are rethinking cloud-first AI plans as costs, sovereignty and regulation favour hybrid deployments.
Genetec: Open platforms key as physical security evolves
Businesses are prioritising hybrid, open security systems to protect existing hardware investments while adopting cloud and AI tools more gradually.
AI transforms CX to go beyond the chatbot
Consumers now expect faster, more automated support as AI agents handle complex customer journeys, though many firms still struggle to prove ROI.
Jamf launches AI Governance to enhance visibility, security
IT teams can now track AI models on Apple fleets to curb data leaks and token spend as businesses wrestle with shadow AI.
Cvent says event success lies in genuine human interaction
Hybrid formats are helping organisers broaden reach without losing the in-room relationships that still drive trust, leads and donations.
AI will fade, says Dell Technologies' ephemeral Chief AI Officer
Dell says agentic AI should shift routine tasks below the machine line, freeing staff for expert work while making the role temporary.
Pead: AI search transition reshaping corporate reputation
AI-generated answers are already shaping public perceptions, forcing firms to manage reputation across trusted third-party sources instead of search rankings.
SAS Innovate: New era of scams requires novel solutions
Australians are losing billions as AI-driven fraud pushes banks, telcos and platforms to share scam data faster and stop payments earlier.
Meet the man behind the Saas-Pocalypse: Emergent's Mukund Jha
The new cash will help Emergent broaden from coding tools into an operating system for small and medium businesses as demand surges.
SonicWall boosts endpoint security for SMBs and mid-market
SMBs and mid-market firms facing AI-driven attacks are set for tighter device controls as SonicWall prepares a new endpoint security product.
Expert Columns
Data Governance in the AI Era: Why One-Off Projects Fail
AI in Retail is Only as Good as its Data Foundation
AI will cost some jobs. Poor change management will cost more
Why AI-Written Phishing Is Outpacing the Native Filters Built to Stop It
Fluent is not factual: Why AI needs verified data in APAC
Three technology myths CIOs should stop believing
The next eCommerce interface may not be a screen
Some AI risks more subtle than others
The smartest AI will help us use less, not just do more
The Next E-commerce Interface May Not Be a Screen
Interviews
Interviews and video coverage from the networkRecent Generative AI News
Incorta launches governed data tools for analytics & AI
Businesses will be able to build data pipelines in a governed environment, as Incorta seeks to cut tool sprawl and reduce AI errors.
Gresham launches AI tool to speed up reconciliations
Banks could cut reconciliation setup time sharply as Gresham's new AI interface lets business users build controls without specialist support.
OutSystems warns of AI agent governance readiness gap
Only 26% of enterprises are ready to resolve AI agent conflicts, exposing a gap between confidence in oversight and operational controls.
Adobe & NVIDIA boost creative software & media tools
Adobe and NVIDIA are expanding their partnership to accelerate AI processing in creative software, cloud media workflows and customer engagement.
Google pitches Gemini agent to startups for busywork
Startups could cut admin and coding time as Google folds Gemini into Workspace and lets teams assign persistent AI coworkers to routine tasks.
Nvidia launches Nemotron 3.5 open models for agents
The new range lets organisations run AI agents on local hardware or in-house servers, cutting reliance on cloud services for sensitive tasks.
Telecom operators turn to open AI models, Nvidia says
Broad support for open source could shape telecom AI spending, with 89% of respondents backing it for cost control, governance and local adaptation.
SpecterOps & OpenAI launch AI security training course
Security teams facing new risks from generative AI can now take eight hours of hands-on training on prompt injection and jailbreaks.
Reco raises USD $55 million with AT&T Ventures backing
The security software company will use the money to expand sales and support as enterprises race to govern AI agents accessing sensitive systems.
Arctic Wolf launches AI oversight tools for security teams
Security teams are being offered earlier attack interruption and clearer AI decision trails as the company adds three products to its Aurora platform.
BlackFog adds AI prompt controls for employee data
The update gives organisations more oversight of employee and agent prompts, helping to stop sensitive data being sent to external AI services.
Panopto launches AI tools to unlock video libraries
Users can now search and reuse recorded lectures and training clips faster, as Panopto's new tools turn video libraries into study aids and answers.
Women fintech CMOs eye bigger teams as AI reshapes work
Most fintech marketing chiefs expect AI to reshape roles rather than cut jobs, with 56% planning to hire and 75% to lift budgets in 2027.
Google rolls out Gemini 4 Argon for enterprise users
The model is being pitched at coding, finance and security teams after Google said it sped up engineering work and helped patch serious flaws.
Deepfake fraud market hits USD $40 billion, report says
Synthetic fraud is now costing banks and insurers USD $40 billion a year, with voice cloning and video deepfakes driving most cases.
Global ad spend to rise 11.9% to USD $1.34 trillion
Rising AI-linked investment and major global events are set to keep ad budgets climbing, even as consumer caution and geopolitical risks persist.
HCLTech signs Anthropic partnership for enterprise AI
The deal should help large firms deploy safer AI systems, with HCLTech adding Claude to services and software for banks, hospitals and manufacturers.
Bloomberg launches Enterprise MCP for AI data access
Financial firms can now give AI agents governed access to Bloomberg data, with context that clarifies currency, pricing and timing.
Braze launches AI tool to test billion customer mixes
The new software aims to help marketing teams automate customer outreach and campaign checks, reducing reliance on technical staff or manual testing.
Bloomberg launches enterprise MCP for AI data access
Financial firms can now let AI agents pull licensed Bloomberg data through a standardised interface that also supplies the context needed to use it correctly.
Job Moves
Inde appoints Nish Sudhakaran as AI & data director
Spectrum Consulting names Darryl van Rensburg for AI drive
Paul Littlefair appointed Chair to lead TUANZ strategic future
Deane Jessep joins StreamGenius AI as new Chief Operating Officer
