Alongside Pedro Pascal, Zendaya may be the most prolific actor in Hollywood right now. At the moment, she has two films at the box office: Spider-Man: Brand New Day, alongside her husband, Tom Holland, and Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey — also alongside Holland. I wonder how they compare paycheques. Earlier this year, before all those […]
You do not get much more classic than Sam Elliott. At 81, he is still going strong and looking good on the red carpet at the Actor Awards alongside his wife, Katharine Ross. His moustache alone could carry an entire career. Speaking to The National, he struck a bittersweet note about the media landscape. “You […]
Tom Holland may have reached a career high, coming straight from playing Telemachus in Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey to returning as Peter Parker in Spider-Man: Brand New Day. The Spider-Man film earned US$932 million worldwide in its opening weekend, the second-biggest global debut ever, while its US$360 million North American opening beat the record previously […]
Once upon a time, aspiring directors made videos on home VHS cameras to show their friends, scratching the creative itch that might one day become a career. Today, those same personalities are drawn to platforms such as YouTube, where childhood passion projects can reach millions of people and somehow still not be seen by anyone […]
Anthonie Tonnon’s Synthesized Universe is restarting a revolution in Whanganui. The show is a live multimedia performance, built around the songs of one of the country’s most singular musicians. Its latest iteration, The Heavens, follows 2021’s A Synthesized Universe and expands the idea into a full audiovisual experience. There is also an asteroid. Tonnon’s interest […]
There is a famous thought experiment in special relativity involving twins. One leaves Earth in a spacecraft travelling close to the speed of light, while the other stays behind. When the travelling twin returns, far less time has passed for him than for his sibling, who has grown old. Though the twins were born moments […]
Photography by Scott Garfield Everyone has an actor whose films they have seen more often than anyone else’s: Jason Statham if you like gritty gangster or revenge action, Timothée Chalamet if you are into arthouse cinema, or Nicolas Cage if you just want a few surreal laughs. For me, it has always been Brad Pitt […]
Leadership researcher Nick Petrie kicked off the M2 AI Summit with a bit of bad news: AI is not going to hand you your time back. Nick Petrie opened with a question, asking the audience to place their own outfits on the technology adoption curve. Ahead of the pack? Behind it? About the same? Easier […]
Mission Ready boss Diana Sharma followed Nick Petrie with a simple, slightly inconvenient argument: AI adoption is a people problem, not a tech one. Diana Sharma started with a recent story. A few weeks earlier, she said, a former chief executive of Google strolled into a hall of university students, announced that AI is the […]
Avocado AI co-founder Cowan Henderson followed Diana Sharma with a figure he trots out a lot: AI productivity is “ten per cent about the tool” and “ninety per cent about leadership, capability and culture”. The rest of his slot was a no-nonsense guide to closing that ninety per cent. “We’re educators, not consultants,” Cowan Henderson […]
Jared Langguth followed with how he dragged his own busy, sceptical colleagues across the line, one workflow at a time. Jared Langguth skipped the usual show of hands. “Who’s actually using a large language model with a workflow to do a multi-step improvement at work?” he asked instead, and far fewer hands went up. Rather […]
Blake Harkness suggested that, in an AI world, “the newest person might be your most valuable”, and the talent everyone’s chasing may already be sitting in the building. Blake Harkness opened by flipping a familiar assumption on its head. Normally, he said, a fresh graduate knows “nothing about your clients, your relationships, the standard operating […]
Atratus founding partner Amit Choudhary wrapped up the morning with the idea that most businesses were built to manage scarcity, and as AI quietly dismantles the old constraints, the winners will be the ones who rethink the model rather than just automate the one they’re stuck with. Amit Choudhary opened with physics and a self-deprecating […]
After lunch, AI educator Caelan Huntress, a fast-talking Portland transplant with a circus background, set out to make agents tangible, demonstrating the leap from AI that suggests things to AI that actually goes and does them. Caelan Huntress warned the room he talks fast (“I get really enthusiastic about this topic”) and then proved it, […]
Closing the day, AI safety specialist Emma Humphrey settled things down after a room full of speakers had urged everyone to race ahead. She explained, with receipts, why you also need to know where the brakes are. Emma Humphrey earned her scepticism the hard way. A Christchurch local with physics and maths degrees, she spent […]
Owen Chau, hobbling on stage in a moon boot, ditched his polished deck for something more honest: what voice AI actually can’t do yet, learned the hard way from putting it into real businesses. Owen Chau opened by binning his own presentation. He had planned to talk about GenAI workflows and “agents that work while […]
Peter Couchman grew up inside an older version of the trades: command, control, guarded knowledge and ‘do it my way’ rules. Today, after more than 40 years in the industry, he leads one of Wellington’s most respected electrical contractors and is helping to build the next generation of electricians. There were three electricians being acknowledged […]
Imagine running your life so far into the ground at 18 that you spend your twenties in prison. Eleven years in one of New Zealand’s toughest prisons was only the beginning of Paul Wood’s journey when he walked out in 2006. From there, he became a doctor of psychology, a leadership and development specialist, motivational […]
News arrived in early August that S&P Global had downgraded Oracle’s credit rating to BBB−, one notch above junk. A further cut would push the company into speculative-grade territory and could raise its borrowing costs sharply. The pressure comes from Oracle’s debt-funded AI infrastructure build-out and its concentration in a handful of major customers, especially […]
A website is a peculiar thing. It can make an unfinished idea look suspiciously complete. Recently, I rebuilt the website for AURA, the coaching business I had been developing. We stripped away unnecessary services, clarified the message and focused everything around one coaching programme. When I saw the result, my immediate response was: ‘That feels […]
Nick Petrie has spoken at M2 events in the past. We were drawn to his background working with Fortune 500 businesses, the FBI, elite sports teams and the US Navy SEALs. That is a portfolio that makes you sit up and take notice. So when he released his new book, 10 Simple Habits to Perform […]
It’s been a savage year of rising costs, thanks in part to pressure on fuel due to the war with Iran. This is expected to continue, but there have been signs of easing. “The recovery has not been derailed, but it has been delayed,” say ASB economists. “Household spending, business investment and some export sectors […]
Xbox is in its 25th year, and a new boss is in charge. In 2026, Phil Spencer retired after 38 years at Microsoft and was succeeded by Asha Sharma, now CEO of Xbox. Sharma previously served as COO of Instacart and a vice president at Meta before returning to Microsoft, where she led CoreAI Product. […]
When I was at uni, I’d occasionally go to Allied Workforce and pick up any odd jobs that didn’t require steel-capped boots, a forklift licence or any skill at all, really. In the early, cold mornings in that shed, we’d sit there wondering whether we’d get any work. The only comfort was morning TV, and […]
For years, Seeby Woodhouse has had the luxury that many founders spend their whole lives vision-boarding. A clean exit. He had money and success. He could step back. He could operate as an owner, shareholder, or director. He could, as he puts it, “go away to Europe for three months and leave the CEO in […]
Dr. Kerry Spackman has built a career on extreme performance. Over the years, his work has taken him into the orbit of four Formula One teams, the All Blacks, Olympians and billionaire business figures, placing him inside worlds that, at first glance, seem to share little in common in terms of the skills, environments and […]
Matt Bishop is not especially interested in preserving the old shape of his industry. Brevity, Bishop’s Auckland-based business still does the practical work of construction engineering, particularly across interiors, racking, events and compliance, but it is also building software, training tools and automation systems for where that work is heading next. Bishop thinks that matters […]
In any industry, being good at the work does not mean you are good at the business. Going to market, pricing properly, building systems, maintaining standards, hiring and developing people, and keeping enough work in front of them without sacrificing quality, these are just some of the plates that need to BE kept spinning. That […]
For all the noise around AI, a lot of businesses still operate with the same old friction. Invoices arrive in different formats. Referral forms turn up incomplete. Orders sit in inboxes. Staff spend hours moving data between systems, checking fields, fixing errors, and doing work that has to be done but adds nothing to growth. […]
Property investing is getting a bit of a beat-up at the moment. Interest rates have reset expectations. Lending is tighter. And some economic experts seem to be having hernias about the future of property. But cycles have a way of distorting perspective. When markets soften, it’s easy to forget what made them powerful in the […]
Tom Slingsby Is a hard man to get hold of. But we managed! Captain of the Australian SailGP Catamaran, competitor in America’s Cup, International man of mystery, all round bloody nice guy. We asked him a number of questions to give us an understanding of the psyche of the man who is undoubtedly the most […]
25 years ago, John Bishop stumbled into the brown-bricked Frog & Bucket Comedy Club on Oldham Street in Manchester on a Monday night, slightly depressed after divorcing his then-wife and looking for something to do. There were only a few others in the place. He put his name down on the open mic list and […]
Formula 1 is an octane and ego fuelled sport, so that makes New Zealand driver Liam Lawson a breath of pretence-free, humble air. In the days before the Visa Cash App RB driver prepared for the unique Baku street circuit, I had a Zoom call with him to understand what powers his journey at the […]
I’m sorry to say that early retirement will cause you to have feelings. A lot of them. Many of the feelings are good—freedom, joy, contentment, gratitude, excitement—but you don’t need help navigating those. Let’s talk about the tougher things you can expect to encounter. Expect the Transition to Take Time “Midway upon the journey of […]
We’re often told to “find balance,” as if it’s a single moment of alignment we can reach and hold forever. But balance is far less about perfection and far more about adaptability. True balance isn’t a goal to achieve. It’s a rhythm to cultivate. As business leaders, entrepreneurs, and high performers, we live with multiple […]
Around here at M2 we’re pretty pro AI, we have a whole event centering around helping businesses how to prepare for it and integrate it with their business. Of course with any tool, proper application is key. When you have an AI hammer that seemingly promises to fix everything, the entire planet starts to look […]
James Laughlin has spent his career in the company of champions and not just in the pipe band world, where he’s a seven-time world champion drummer or his award-winning podcast. As a high-performance coach, he’s worked with elite athletes, CEOs, founders, world-class musicians, and leaders at the very top of their game. These are people […]
The question came from my friend Sam, who’s just quit his job. Together, Sam and I co-founded two businesses. The first, a user research consultancy, was sold to PwC in 2014. The second, a SaaS business supporting user researchers, was sold to a private equity firm in 2021 (although we both remain minority shareholders). Thanks […]
photography by DaniloPhoto Ben Liebert never set out to build one of the most sophisticated cloud integration and data access platforms on the market. But then again, the SyncHub founder never quite followed the script either. “I’ve built about 15 different startups or software platforms over the years,” he says. “But this one just clicked. […]
As Chair and Director at Virtual Blue, Dr. Peter Catt is not just talking about the future, he’s building it. With a doctorate in applied computing, a private pilot’s licence, and a curiosity that spans everything from machine learning to cosmology, he blends deep domain technical knowledge with big-picture vision. We talk to Peter about […]
While, these days we might be sidetracked with generating ChatGPT Studio Ghibli versions of ourselves, there is still no competition for pure human creativity that cuts through the zeitgeist of the moment and has the power to drive new ideas, create universal connection and build the foundation for the world’s most iconic companies. New Zealand, […]
When Igor Matich arrived in New Zealand as a 14-year-old immigrant from war-torn Croatia, he didn’t speak English, didn’t know anyone, and had no idea what the future held. But what he did have was perspective, an understanding of risk, resilience, and what really matters. It’s that same clarity that’s guided him from navigating a […]
Chris Matthews wears: Emil Navy Long Sleeve Knitted Polo $299 (KPMI004) Dougie Chocolate Chino $199 (PCW005) From Working Style AI mania has swept its way through every sector and has quickly become one of the defining technologies of the 21st century, already apparently reshaping industries and redefining how businesses operate globally. Amidst all the buzz, […]
Behind some of the most recognisable beverage labels on New Zealand shelves and increasingly offshore is a business that has grown quietly, strategically, and with remarkable resilience. Global Endeavours, led by founder Hamish Gordon, is a vertically integrated group that spans commodity trading, contract manufacturing, and brand development. With operations across New Zealand and Australia, […]
As Chief Technology & Information Officer at 2degrees, Stephen Kurzeja is helping shape the digital infrastructure that underpins how New Zealand connects. With AI rapidly moving from hype to implementation, Kurzeja sees more than just a technical shift, he sees an inflection point. One that has the potential to reshape not only how 2degrees operates, […]
Tim Boyne didn’t grow up dreaming of IPOs and founder exits. He wasn’t raised in a house where startup valuations were casual conversation. Instead, he grew up in Tauranga, raised by a solo mother who, he would later realise, was performing daily acts of heroism just to keep the family afloat. There were no lectures […]
As Chief Strategic Officer and Vice President of Mobility, Lexus and Motorsport at Toyota New Zealand, Andrew Davis has been a key figure in Lexus’s rise as one of the country’s fastest-growing premium automotive brands. Over nearly two decades with Toyota, his leadership has helped guide Lexus through a period of rapid transformation, marked by […]
Anne woke up on 1 January feeling positive and motivated (and just a tad hungover), saying to herself “This is going to be an awesome year!” She’d been thinking about her goals and now it was time to lock in her New Year’s resolutions and start making progress! That positive feeling and motivation lasted all […]
If you’re reading this article, it’s likely because you, like me, are interested in or aspire to be successful. It’s a journey that we all embark upon, driven by our ambitions and the desire for personal accomplishment. In this piece, let us explore the concept of success, how we can enhance its perception, and why […]
I recently finished the excellent biography of Elon Musk by Walter Isaacson, and it got me thinking. Elon is totally unique; his appetite for risk is extraordinary, as is his ability to challenge the status quo. His impulsivity and ruthlessness are also legendary, resulting in many detractors and people who openly ridicule or disparage him. […]
