AI Governance Working Group

“Leadership and practical tools to support the responsible governance of AI in Aotearoa”

Why we have formed

In 2023, the NZ AI Forum established this evergreen working group to provide thought leadership on the responsible governance of AI in Aotearoa and develop a curated set of frameworks, tools and approaches that meet the needs of New Zealand organisations.

The group was formulated specifically to address the following:

To ensure that Te Ao Māori is embedded in AI governance approaches adopted in New Zealand
To open the eyes of NZ board members and execs on the need to incorporate AI governance in their organisations.
To ensure people building AI have access to useful tools that embed responsible AI governance in the AI lifecycle
To strengthen the AI Governance community in New Zealand by making connections between existing AI Governance groups and subject matter experts from the private sector, government and academia.
Recognising that effective governance of AI relies on solid foundations of responsible governance, use and processing of New Zealanders’ data.

The Forum established this working group to give form and substance to the organisation’s purpose, vision and values with regards to AI Governance.

The Forum’s intent is for the working group to use the Forum’s power to convene to bring together knowledge from across the AI ecosystem to collate and bring to life AI best practice and guidelines for its use in Aotearoa New Zealand.

The AI Forum New Zealand facilitates AI advancement for the benefit of Aotearoa New Zealand across a multi-stakeholder environment. Members are encouraged to consider different points of view when formulating projects, to provoke conversation within the working groups and cultivate open critique and reflection.

Deliverables

The AI Governance Working Group programme of work in 2023 culminated with the launch of the AI Governance website, a strong foundation which to further build upon. This formative work however is only the beginning of the journey. In 2024, the focus will continue on:

1 – Toolkits workstream: How to do responsible AI governance – Curation of tools, approaches, principles to operationalise responsible AI governance

Objective: Ensure people building AI have access to useful tools that embed responsible AI governance in the AI lifecycle
Audience: AI Product Managers / Start ups

2 – Masterclass workstream: AI Governance – Highlighting competitive advantages and risk mitigation of Responsible AI governance.

Objective: To open the eyes of NZ board members and execs on the need to incorporate AI governance.
Audience: Directors and Senior Executives (decision makers).

Do you want to get involved?

The AI Governance Working Group meets regularly and works together to produce advice on practical tools for New Zealand organisations and their leaders. If you are interested in getting involved and potentially leading some of that work, please get in touch here.

If you are not a member and would like to join, you can become a member here.