Principles for Digital Identity

Introduction Digital identity in New Zealand (DIiNZ) must recognise that Māori identity is not only an attribute of an individual account, but also relational, collective, and grounded in whakapapa, whānau, hapū, iwi, whenua and other traditional collective identity mechanisms. Most digital identity systems begin from a different assumption, that one person, one account, verified by … Read more

Social Licence and Te Tiriti o Waitangi

People at a desk with computers talking

What is a social licence? A social licence to operate (SLO) is the ongoing acceptance or approval that an organisation receives from communities and other groups affected by its activities. It is different from formal legal permission. A social licence reflects trust and credibility built through responsible practices, ethical behaviour and meaningful engagement. The idea … Read more

NZ racist AI generated ad

Clip from the advert depicting a man in a headlock

Voyager Broadband‘s (Actrix Networks, 1st Domains / Affordable Domains / Register Direct) latest advertisement (via RNZ) shows two Māori/Pacific men, one of whom is attacking a Pākehā man by having him in a chocker hold on the floor, after their internet drops out during a UFC match on the television. The advert was made with … Read more

Māori Data Sovereignty preferences in GenAI

This post analyses public preferences of the use of GenAI in the policy decision-making process across New Zealand and compares non-New Zealand Māori to other New Zealand’s preferences. The methodology is at the end of the article. Public preferences of the use of GenAI in the policy decision-making process across New Zealand. Each column is … Read more

Human Oversight in Automated Decision Making

Robot at a computer monitor in a dark room.

The New Zealand media continue to report on AI harms from a western, academic, middle-class perspective while continuing to make invisible communities silent and ignored. This is a te ao Māori perspective of the recent MSD automated Decision Making law that was passed, delving deep into community harms for Māori. I have spent years documenting … Read more

Personal Māori Data Sovereignty

Data Leakage

I am often asked by individuals how they can better implement Data and Digital Sovereignty in their home and whānau lives. Here are some immediate steps you can take that will protect your privacy and save you money. Primary audience is non-technically literate people using a Windows computer, who want to save money and increase … Read more

Kaupapa Māori AI Framework

I am excited to release, perhaps the world’s first Indigenous Peoples AI Framework for understanding and describing the nature of an Artificial Intelligence (AI). Drawing on mātauranga Māori, tikanga Māori, and te reo Māori, the framework is encapsulated in the whakatauāki :He Tangata, He Karetao, He Ātārangi” (A person, a puppet, a shadow). Each term describes … Read more

New Zealand and Māori AI Sovereignty

This article considers why building sovereign AI capability within New Zealand is not just a technological imperative, it is a strategic necessity. Countries like Australia, Germany, Denmark and the EU are already planning and implementing Sovereign AI, while New Zealand remains a customer and not an AI leader. Many overseas AI models are controlled by … Read more

Māori AI Sovereignty Principles

Sovereign AI is about keeping control over our future and recognising Māori Data Sovereignty. Tino rangatiratanga mō tātou, ā, mō ngā uri ā muri ake nei The ability to create and control our destiny for generations to come. These principles are a localised version of the international Indigenous AI Sovereign principles. Pou 1. Data sovereignty … Read more

Gen AI for Ethical use of Mātauranga

The image depicts a conceptual representation of Artificial Intelligence (AI) or data analysis, showing a person interacting with holographic data visualizations.

Below is a Gen AI for Ethical use of Mātauranga template statement that can be copied and pasted for use in any educational facility, workplace or other organisation. Please be respectful of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License associated with this and acknowledge accordingly. Māori data sovereignty and AI governance Data is the source … Read more

Good news AI case study for Māori education

Chat GPT generated image. Prompt "Create an image of Māori children at school"

According to their media release, the Writer’s Toolbox is a New Zealand and Australian education company. They provide an educational writing programme, powered by patented AI, designed to help students master writing. It is having a serious impact on Māori students’ literacy achievements. After using Writer’s Toolbox [using a locally-built AI], Thornton School [Decile 5, … Read more

AI Principles in Aotearoa NZ

Gemini generated image. Prompt is create an image of artificial intelligence of ethics with different cultured people around a table.

AI principles guide the ethical development and deployment of AI systems by companies and other organisations, while AI disclaimers are statements that acknowledge AI-generated content or outcomes – see my previous post for more details. There is an international best practice benchmark set by the OECD which is widely accepted and adapted by many countries. … Read more

Financial considerations for Māori and NZ Data Sovereignty

cloud

According to this article the uncertainty with the foreign exchange and the $NZ loosing to the $USA, cloud computing has increased by 14% since September 2024. In addition to the international uncertainly with global events and the need to maintain security and budgets are all creating risks for New Zealand businesses that use cloud computing. … Read more

X is allowing 3rd parties to train AI on its data starting Nov 15

Earlier this week X (formerly Twitter) updated its Privacy Policy to indicate that it would allow third-party “collaborators” to train their AI models on X data, unless users opt out. Thanks to TechCrunch who first published the details. If you have already locked down your Twitter Privacy, there appears no change. This is a timely reminder that your posts … Read more

Cross-agency survey of use cases for Artificial Intelligence

nzgov

The Government Chief Digital Officer (GCDO) released results of the 2024 cross-agency survey of use cases for artificial intelligence (AI). The results are not surprising when read and considered in conjunction with Aotearoa New Zealand business surveys and privacy perceptions of AI by the Aotearoa New Zealand public. Of surprise though, is the guidance discriminates … Read more

First New Zealand government agency to trial Generative AI

According toRadioNZ article, ACC is the first New Zealand government agency to trial Generative AI over the past year using Microsoft’s Copilot in tests. This article covers the key points and looks at the benefits and risks to Māori. Key points from the article: Most importantly and most reassuring is the government’s chief digital officer … Read more

Jurisdictional Māori Data Sovereignty

cloud sov

One of the 6 principals of  Māori Data Sovereignty refers to jurisdictional considerations, or the requirement to store Māori data in New Zealand when appropriate. Jurisdictional considerations for Māori Data should include Māori Data that is tapu (sacred or sensitive) including not limited to: genetic data,  personal health data and other private data about individuals, … Read more

Māori Voices in the Artificial Intelligence Landscape

Māori Peoples are at the cross roads with Artificial Intelligence and other emerging technologies; We can either turn right and decolonise and empower ourselves, or turn left and have status quo with all of the negative statistics and inequities. Featured Image Credit The AI Tribe. While the world faces the rapid growth of AI technologies, … Read more