Gloves off – Getting Serious with AI for SaaS businesses

AI is no longer a feature. It’s a fundamental rewrite of how software is built, sold, and scaled. This highly interactive, full‑day event is hosted by Taiawa - Wellington Tech Hub in partnership with NZTE. It's designed for SaaS and software leaders who want to move beyond experimentation and understand how AI is actively disrupting products, go‑to‑market models, and customer delivery —and what that means for the future growth of their business.

What you’ll experience

Morning: Building and launching AI‑native products
How leading SaaS companies are designing, validating, and shipping AI‑driven products that change user expectations—and competitive dynamics.

Our speakers - Chloe Kyrke-Smith (BlackPearl), Loic Estier (RossOps) and Jessica Venning-Bryan (Factor)

Afternoon: Scaling AI across the business
How AI is being embedded across development, marketing, sales, and customer operations to unlock step‑change gains in speed, scale, and effectiveness.

Our speakers - Andrew Butel (Telos), Ben Gleisner (Cogo), Cody Bunea (Re-Leased) & Carl Olsen (Sharesies)

Two AI Leaders from Victoria University of Wellington's Centre of Data Science and AI will be sharing cutting edge research that impacts scaling AI.

Networking Drinks from 5pm

Why is this event different?

Hosted by Serge van Dam, you’ll hear directly from software and AI leaders who are deploying disruptive AI capabilities inside their businesses—sharing what worked, what didn’t, and what they would do differently. The format is deliberately practical and provocative:

• Live demonstrations of emerging capabilities
• Open discussion on risks, trade‑offs, and downstream impacts
• Space to challenge assumptions and stress‑test ideas

Who should attend

• Founders and CEOs
• Product, technology, and growth leaders
• Senior decision‑makers responsible for strategy, innovation, and execution

If your role involves deciding where AI truly matters – and where it doesn’t – this day is for you.

Why attend?

This event is an opportunity to:

• Understand how disruptive AI capabilities translate into real business impact
• Leave with concrete ideas you can immediately apply inside your own organisation

Morning and afternoon tea, lunch and networking drinks provided

Unfunded tech founder? Please contact the event organiser, as your ticket is subsidised.

Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.

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Host or Publisher Victoria University of Wellington