--- title: Original Frameworks description: Explore Māori ethic frameworks for AI and data, grounded in mātauranga Māori and the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. url: https://www.taiuru.co.nz/original-frameworks/ markdown_url: https://www.taiuru.co.nz/original-frameworks.md type: page slug: original-frameworks author: Karaitiana Taiuru published: 2026-09-16T02:50:14Z modified: 2026-10-17T21:35:09Z language: en-NZ word_count: 1242 tokens: 2073 --- # Original Frameworks Dr Karaitiana Taiuru has developed more than a dozen original frameworks, principles, guidelines and templates for applying Te Tiriti o Waitangi, tikanga Māori and Māori Data Sovereignty to artificial intelligence, data, robotics, digital identity and genetics. They are grounded in mātauranga Māori, Waitangi Tribunal findings including WAI 2522, and New Zealand case law, and are used by government agencies, universities, schools, iwi and businesses across Aotearoa New Zealand. This page lists each one, what it is for, and where to read it. Read our glossary for more AI and Māori Sovereignty terms. Which framework should I use? Writing an AI policy or ethics statement: start with the 6 Te Tiriti Based AI Ethical Principles. Explaining what an AI is, from a Māori worldview: He Tangata, He Karetao, He Ātārangi. Building or investing in Māori-owned AI: the Māori AI Sovereignty Principles. Handling Māori data in any system: the Compendium of Māori Data Sovereignty. A school or workplace using generative AI: the education policy template and mātauranga statement. Digital identity or biometrics: the Principles for Digital Identity. Artificial intelligence and robotics 6 Te Tiriti Based Artificial Intelligence Ethical Principles (2023) Six peer-reviewed ethical principles for any AI system that uses Māori data, produces Māori data, or makes decisions about Māori. They were originally written for the Prime Minister’s Chief Science Advisor’s report on AI in healthcare, then generalised for all AI. The six principles are: Tino Rangatiratanga: Māori leadership, decision-making and governance across the whole AI life cycle. Equity: AI achieves equitable outcomes for Māori and builds the Māori AI workforce. Active protection: free, prior and informed consent for Māori data, and safeguards against bias and stigmatising predictions. Mana whakahaere: kaitiakitanga over AI systems, with Māori data treated as a taonga and not repurposed without permission. Mana motuhake: tikanga followed throughout development and deployment, with Māori deciding which data and uses are allowed. Tapu/noa: no AI is culturally unsafe or breaches tapu and noa. Read the 6 Te Tiriti Based AI Ethical Principles → He Tangata, He Karetao, He Ātārangi: Kaupapa Māori AI Framework (2026) A kaupapa Māori framework for understanding and describing the nature of an AI, expressed in the whakatauāki “a person, a puppet, a shadow”. AI presents as a person (he tangata), is moved by many hands so accountability is easily diffused (he karetao), and is a shadow of human knowledge and culture that cannot itself be held to account (he ātārangi). It is one of the first Indigenous frameworks of its kind. Read He Tangata, He Karetao, He Ātārangi → Māori AI Sovereignty Principles (2025) A localised version of international Indigenous AI sovereignty principles, setting out five pou for Māori control of AI: data sovereignty and data governance; control over infrastructure and code; skilled workforces; economic reinvestment; and investment in innovation. Read the Māori AI Sovereignty Principles → Treaty of Waitangi/Te Tiriti and Māori Ethics Guidelines for AI, Algorithms, Data and IOT (2020) An early published guideline applying Te Tiriti o Waitangi and Māori ethics to artificial intelligence, algorithms, data and the Internet of Things. Read the Te Tiriti and Māori Ethics Guidelines → Te Tiriti o Waitangi Principles for Robotics (2023) Principles to help the robotics industry and researchers acknowledge Te Tiriti o Waitangi, designed to be read alongside Māori Data Sovereignty principles. Read the Te Tiriti Principles for Robotics → Māori Data Sovereignty Compendium of Māori Data Sovereignty The current, consolidated source for Dr Taiuru’s Māori Data Sovereignty work, bringing together his definitions, principles, the Māori Data Ethical Framework (2020), commitment statements and consultation obligations. Since October 2026 it replaces his earlier standalone Māori Data Sovereignty pages, which are kept for the historical record. Read the Compendium of Māori Data Sovereignty → Kaitiakitanga Māori Data Sovereignty Licences (2021) Six licences that Māori can apply to their data to protect it and assert Māori Data Sovereignty rights, as an alternative to generic open licences. Read the Kaitiakitanga Licences → Hapū and Marae Data Sovereignty Datasets (2021) Open datasets of iwi, hapū and marae names for database administrators, so that systems can record hapū and marae affiliation and recognise their data rights, not just iwi. Hapū Data Sovereignty Dataset → Marae Data Sovereignty Data Sets → Data is a Taonga: a customary Māori perspective (2018) A foundational paper explaining, from tikanga Māori, why data about Māori is a taonga. Read Data is a Taonga → Digital identity, biometrics and genetics Principles for Digital Identity (2026) Principles for digital identity in New Zealand that recognise Māori identity as relational and collective, grounded in whakapapa, whānau, hapū, iwi and whenua, rather than only “one person, one account”. Read the Principles for Digital Identity → Tikanga Tawhito, Tikanga Hou: Guidelines for DNA Research and Storage (2022) A bioethics guideline drawing on traditional and modern mātauranga Māori for the ethical research and storage of Māori genetic samples (ISBN 978-0-9582597-8-1), with accompanying literature reviews. Read the DNA research and storage guidelines → Literature reviews → Templates and practical tools AI and Generative AI Policy Template for Education (2025): a New Zealand-specific AI policy template for schools and tertiary institutions. Gen AI for Ethical Use of Mātauranga statement (2025): a copy-and-paste statement for any educational facility, workplace or organisation, released under CC BY 4.0. AI Disclaimers (2025): guidance on disclosing AI use, including when mātauranga Māori or Māori data is involved. Māori-led Framework for Data Centre Development (2026): a proposed framework for AI and data centres built on environmental protections grounded in tikanga Māori. Māori Opinions and Views Framework (2024): explains why there is no single “Māori opinion”, building on Sir Mason Durie’s work. Consumer Guidelines for Māori Non-Fungible Tokens (2022): guidance on cultural appropriation and stolen Māori imagery in NFTs. Frequently asked questions What are the 6 Te Tiriti Based AI Ethical Principles? They are six ethical principles for AI developed by Dr Karaitiana Taiuru: Tino Rangatiratanga, Equity, Active protection, Mana whakahaere, Mana motuhake, and Tapu/noa. They apply to any AI system that uses Māori data, produces Māori data, or makes decisions about Māori. What is the He Tangata, He Karetao, He Ātārangi framework? It is a kaupapa Māori framework by Dr Karaitiana Taiuru, released in 2026, that describes AI as a person, a puppet and a shadow: it presents like a person, is moved by many hands, and is a shadow of human knowledge and culture that cannot itself be held to account. Where is the current version of Dr Taiuru’s Māori Data Sovereignty principles? In the Compendium of Māori Data Sovereignty. Since October 2026 it is the consolidated source for his Māori Data Sovereignty definitions, principles and frameworks, and replaces his earlier standalone pages. Which framework should an organisation use for an AI policy? Start with the 6 Te Tiriti Based AI Ethical Principles, read alongside the Compendium of Māori Data Sovereignty. Schools and tertiary providers can adapt the AI and Generative AI Policy Template for Education. Can I use these frameworks in my organisation? Yes. They are published so that organisations can use them. Cite the original page, check each one for its licence and citation details, and contact Taiuru & Associates for help applying a framework to a specific system or policy. Help applying the frameworks Taiuru & Associates helps organisations turn these frameworks into working policies, assessments and controls, so that Māori provisions shape real decisions rather than sitting in an introduction. AI governance → Māori AI → Biometrics → Contact Taiuru & Associates → Last updated: 8 October 2026