Technology
Unease about facial recognition tech
United Kingdom correspondent Lucy Thomson spoke to Melissa Chan-Green about handheld facial recognition technology being rolled out by Police in London, as well as new figures out of the UK showing… Audio
AI needs its own category of copyright law, Researcher says
With the technology now readily available and rapidly developing, a New Zealand researcher says that AI needs a category of its own when it comes to copyright law. In 2018 the Ministry of Business… Audio
Trial for treating spina bifida in the womb shows remarkable results
Early trials of a breakthrough stem cell therapy to treat babies with spina bifida while still in the womb is showing remarkable results. The trial results published today in The Lancet medical… Audio
Sir Richard Taylor recognised at prestigious visual effects awards
The Wētā Workshop co-founder has been awarded the prestigious VES Visionary Award at the 24th Annual VES Awards in Los Angeles.
Hospital IT outages will continue due to Health NZ staff cuts, union warns
The Public Service Association says cuts to Health NZ's digital team mean they have lost IT experts who know how to patch up outages quickly.
Programmer says he accidentally hacked 7000 robot vacuums
Sammy Azdoufal's experience has drawn attention to the potential security risks of smart home gadgets.
Tech: Rooftop satellite station angers residents, US workaround to EU blocked content
Technology correspondent Bill Bennett joins Kathryn to explain why construction of a rooftop satellite station in central Auckland has upset nearby residents. Audio
Why betting on online prediction markets is now illegal
Explainer - What to know about New Zealand's crackdown on betting on the future. Audio
BBC orders probe into 'serious mistake' over BAFTA racial slur
Tourette's sufferer John Davidson, who inspired one of the winning films, has said he is "deeply mortified" after shouting the N-word at the ceremony.
MediMap seeks court injunction to protect stolen medical data
The hacked health portal is heading to court to try to block people accessing and using the data that has been breached. Audio
Midday Report Essentials for Wednesday 25 February 2026
New details have emerged about exactly what was hacked in the MediMap data breach. Midday Report can reveal that recorded medication and substance allergies were compromised, along with records of… Audio
Explainer: Why are our medical platforms getting hacked?
As you'll have heard in the news, another New Zealand medical data platform has been hit by hackers ... just two months after patient portal 'Manage My Health' was breached MediMap is used by health… Audio
Warning that NZ is ‘AI illiterate’ and it could harm the economy
New Zealand is AI illiterate, and if we don't act soon, it could seriously harm our economy. That's the warning from technology expert Mark Laurence, who is questioning why AI is not a key election… Audio
Heat pump giant on NZ expansion
The world's biggest heat pump and air conditioning manufacturers has expanded its presence in this country. Daikin has now moved into a new $30 million warehouse facility in the Christchurch suburb… Audio
Why some newer smartphones may be hit by 3G shutdown
All three main mobile operators are shutting down their 3G networks and upgrading their sites to either 4G or 5G. Audio
AI and privacy: Commissioner signs on to global statement on 'potential harms'
New Zealand's privacy commissioner's office has signed on to a global joint statement voicing concerns about AI-generated images and calling on organisations to follow the law. Audio
Shower Thoughts: Is my phone listening to my conversations?
Andrew Chen is a technology ethics researcher and joins Nights to explain.
Audio
CEOs fear being left behind in the AI race
A survey reveals the country's top executives are optimistic about economic recovery and the fortunes of their own companies, but fear being left behind when it comes to artificial intelligence.
Technology: Volt Typhoon - the infrastructure 'sleeper cell'
Tech commentator Tony Grasso looks at new warnings from security agencies here and in Australia about 'Volt Typhoon', a Chinese-sponsored hacking group that looks to disrupt critical infrastructure.
…Mark Zuckerberg grilled over whether Instagram is addictive
He did not respond to a question about what his message would be to parents who say their children were harmed by social media.
