New Zealand’s Tech Giants, present and future

Aerial view of Wellington, New Zealand. Kudos to Sulthan Auliya, unsplash (2020)

Introduction

When you think of New Zealand, the first thing that you may be thinking about is sheep, the Kiwi bird (or fruit), Lord of the Rings, or some beautiful panoramic view.

One of the last things you may think of is New Zealand being a high tech hub. Yet despite a population of 4.9 Million and at the edge of the world, New Zealand has several produced several industry leading companies that is making an impact on the global stage today.

This post intends to give you a list of established world leading New Zealand tech companies and also a list of up and comers to keep an eye on.

Established companies

Logos of some of New Zealand’s established tech companies.

• Xero, an accounting software platform serving millions of SME’s throughout the world based in Wellington, Hawkes Bay and Auckland.
• Pushpay, a donor management software company used by thousands of organisations and particularly successful in the United States and Canada, based in Auckland.
• Weta Digital, the digital visual effects company behind blockbusters like the Lord of the Rings, King Kong and Avatar, based in Wellington.
• Orion Health, a healthcare software company providing essential health related software to many organisations throughout the world, based in Christchurch.
• Vista Group, providing software to the cinema’s all over the world, based in Auckland.
• Datacom, a massive IT service and consulting company operating in many places all over the world, based in Wellington and Auckland.
• Gallagher Group, the original inventors of the electric fence and a global leader in livestock management equipment, based in Hamilton
• Fisher & Paykel Health, designers and sellers of healthcare products with a special emphasis on respiratory equipment, based in Auckland.
• Scott Technology, a robotics company making various automation equipment with subsidiaries across the globe, based in Dunedin.
• Eroad, a fleet management and road transportation hardware and software provider based in Auckland.

Up and coming companies

Logos of some notable up and coming NZ tech companies.

• Soul Machines, an AI company creating human-like avatar’s mimicking human facial expressions, based in Auckland.
• Vend, a point-of-sale software maker servicing retailers, based in Auckland.
• Halter, a cow management software allowing farmers to monitor and move cows using a smart collar, based in Auckland.
• Serko, a travel and expenses solutions for companies, based in Auckland.