# Site Content for LLMs # Generated: 2026-06-20T08:32:57.127Z # Site URL: https://vicai.org.nz ## Collection: all ### Page: Contact URL: https://vicai.org.nz/contact/ Date: 2026-06-20T08:30:46.542Z Content: Contact Get in touch Questions, ideas, partnerships. We'd love to hear from you. First Name * required Please enter your first name Last Name * required Please enter your last name Email * required Please enter a valid email address Subject * required Select a topic General Enquiry Events Sponsorship Collaboration Media / Press Other Please select a subject Message * required Please enter a message Please complete the verification check. Send Message For media and press enquiries, please visit our Media & Press page. Message sent! Thanks for reaching out. We'll get back to you as soon as we can. Email contact@vicai.org.nz Media Enquiries For press and media enquiries, please visit our Media & Press page. Location Victoria University of Wellington Kelburn Parade, Wellington 6012, New Zealand Office Hours We don't have an office, but catch us at events or email us anytime. Social IG LI GH --- ### Page: Blog URL: https://vicai.org.nz/blog/ Date: 2026-06-20T08:30:46.542Z Content: Blog Thoughts, tutorials, and stories from VicAI Written by students, for students. ai-policy democracy lobbying new-zealand How AI Is Reshaping Lobbying and Threatening Democracy Large language models can flood select committees, manufacture public opinion, and automate political lobbying at scale. What does this mean for democratic participation? Arie Joe 20 February 2026 7 minutes Want to write for VicAI? We're always looking for student contributors. Share your AI research, opinions, tutorials, or event experiences. Get in Touch Stay in the Loop Get our newsletter Events, workshops, and AI news from Wellington. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. Subscribe to Newsletter --- ### Page: Developers URL: https://vicai.org.nz/developers/ Date: 2026-06-20T08:30:46.542Z Content: Developers Data & agent resources Machine-readable endpoints and discovery documents published by this site for agents, crawlers, and tools. The VicAI website is a static site. It does not run an interactive API, but it publishes its content as read-only, machine-readable endpoints. Everything below is a plain GET request requiring no authentication. Content endpoints /feed.xml — Atom feed of blog posts and notices ( application/atom+xml ). /sitemap.xml — XML sitemap of every page ( application/xml ). /calendar.ics — iCalendar feed of events ( text/calendar ). /llms.txt — full-text content index for language models ( text/plain ). Discovery documents /.well-known/api-catalog — RFC 9727 API catalog as a linkset ( application/linkset+json ). /openapi.json — OpenAPI 3.1 description of the endpoints on this page ( application/openapi+json ). /status.json — service health endpoint ( application/json ). /robots.txt — crawl rules and Content-Signal preferences. Markdown for agents Every HTML page can be served as Markdown. Send the header Accept: text/markdown and you will receive a pre-rendered Markdown version of the page instead of HTML; the response includes an x-markdown-tokens header with an estimated token count. Browsers, which never send that header, continue to receive HTML. curl -H "Accept: text/markdown" https://vicai.org.nz/ Content usage Our robots.txt publishes Content Signals ( ai-train=yes, search=yes, ai-input=yes ): we welcome the use of this site's content for AI training, search indexing, and AI input. Questions? Get in touch . --- ### Page: Events URL: https://vicai.org.nz/events/ Date: 2026-06-20T08:30:46.542Z Content: Events Where Wellington's AI community learns, builds, and connects. Talks, workshops, hackathons, expos, and socials. Subscribe to Calendar All Talks Workshops Hackathons Social Expos Upcoming social 05 MAY From AI to Z: The Future of Enterprise AI on the Mainframe IBM's Adam LG Ring comes to VUW to break down how agentic AI is being deployed on the world's most critical computing infrastructure. 5:30 PM (17:30) – 7:00 PM (19:00) To Be Confirmed Past Events expo 24 FEB Trimester 1 Clubs Expo 2026 - Tuesday Find us at the 2026 Clubs Expo at Victoria University of Wellington. 11:00 AM (11:00) – 3:00 PM (15:00) Cotton Building Corridor, Kelburn Campus, Victoria University of Wellington expo 25 FEB Trimester 1 Clubs Expo 2026 - Wednesday Find us at the 2026 Clubs Expo at Victoria University of Wellington. 11:00 AM (11:00) – 3:00 PM (15:00) Cotton Building Corridor, Kelburn Campus, Victoria University of Wellington social 12 MAR VicAI Launch: Welcome to the Future Our inaugural event: an evening for students across every faculty who are curious about AI. Short presentation introducing VicAI followed by casual networking. 5:30 PM (17:30) – 7:00 PM (19:00) To Be Confirmed Stay in the Loop Get our newsletter Events, workshops, and AI news from Wellington. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. Subscribe to Newsletter --- ### Page: Join URL: https://vicai.org.nz/join/ Date: 2026-06-20T08:30:46.542Z Content: Join VicAI Become a member Membership is open to VUW students, alumni, and the public. First Name * required Please enter your first name Last Name * required Please enter your last name Phone Number * required Please enter a valid phone number (e.g. +64 21 123 4567) Membership Class * required Select membership class Student Member Public Member Alumni Member Please select a membership class Personal Email * required Please enter a valid email address University Email * required Please enter a valid university email (@myvuw.ac.nz, @vuw.ac.nz, or @ecs.vuw.ac.nz) Email * required Please enter a valid email address Student ID * required Please enter your student ID Study Level * required Undergraduate Postgraduate Please select your study level Degree Programme(s) * required (select up to 3) BA (Bachelor of Arts) BSc (Bachelor of Science) BCom (Bachelor of Commerce) BE (Bachelor of Engineering) BDes (Bachelor of Design Innovation) BMus (Bachelor of Music) LLB (Bachelor of Laws) BEd (Bachelor of Education) BHSc (Bachelor of Health Sciences) Other Please select at least one degree programme 0" x-cloak> Subject(s) (based on your degree selection) 0" class="subject-picker__empty">No results match your search. Year of Study * required Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4+ Please select your year of study Postgraduate Level * required Certificate Diploma Honours Master’s Doctorate Please select your postgraduate level Honours Programme (select your programme) 0" x-cloak> Honours Subject (based on your programme) 6"> 0" class="subject-picker__empty">No subjects match your search. Master’s Programme (select your programme) 0" class="subject-picker__empty">No programmes match your search. Doctorate Programme (select your programme) Primary Campus(es) * required Pipitea Kelburn Te Aro Distance Please select at least one campus I confirm that I am currently enrolled as a student at Te Herenga Waka, Victoria University of Wellington. I understand that a Student Member is an individual who is currently enrolled at the University, admitted to membership under cl 7, and who has not ceased to be a member under any other clause. A Student Member has full voting rights. You must confirm your enrolment status Member Type * required Select member type Individual Incorporated Body Unincorporated Body Please select a member type I acknowledge that a Public Member is an individual, incorporated or unincorporated body admitted to membership under cl 7 and who or which has not ceased to be a member under any other clause, who or which has no voting rights. You must acknowledge the public membership terms Areas of Interest Machine Learning Natural Language Processing Computer Vision AI Ethics & Safety Robotics General / Just Curious What do you hope to get from VicAI? All membership applications are manually reviewed by our committee. We will get back to you once your application has been processed. Please complete the verification check. Submit Application Application Received Thank you for your membership application. Our committee manually reviews every application. We will be in touch via the email address you provided once your application has been processed. This typically takes 2–5 working days. A copy of your application has been saved. You do not need to resubmit. Browse Events Back to Home --- ### Page: Home URL: https://vicai.org.nz/ Date: 2026-06-20T08:30:46.542Z Content: Wellington, New Zealand Vic AI AI for the benefit of everyone Join the Society Upcoming Events 52.4739°S / 174.7762°E Our Mission Our mission is to engage with AI for the benefit of everyone. We are committed to learning, building and sharing knowledge and skills to equip our community with the tools to innovate with people’s interest and passion at heart. Notices Announcement Kiwi Neural Network Merger Kiwi Neural Network (KKN) has officially merged with and been absorbed into the Victoria Artificial Intelligence Society (VicAI). 20 February 2026 Announcement VicAI is launching We're building Wellington's student AI community. Sign ups are open, so join us to be part of our first events, workshops, and projects. 9 February 2026 View All Notices Upcoming Events social 05 MAY From AI to Z: The Future of Enterprise AI on the Mainframe IBM's Adam LG Ring comes to VUW to break down how agentic AI is being deployed on the world's most critical computing infrastructure. 5:30 PM (17:30) – 7:00 PM (19:00) To Be Confirmed View All Events What We Do Six Pillars. One Purpose. 01 Labs Collaborative AI research projects, reading groups, and paper discussions. 02 Education Resources, community discussions, blog posts, and reading lists. 03 Events & Media Creating experiences, awareness and event through visual and informative content. 04 Sponsorship & Partership Building industry relationships, opportunities and partnerships. 05 Safety & Governance Research and discussion on safe and ethical use of AI. 06 Outreach & Diversity Mentorship intiatives and programs. Latest from the Blog ai-policy democracy lobbying new-zealand How AI Is Reshaping Lobbying and Threatening Democracy Large language models can flood select committees, manufacture public opinion, and automate political lobbying at scale. What does this mean for democratic participation? Arie Joe 20 February 2026 7 minutes Read the Blog Stay in the Loop Get our newsletter Events, workshops, and AI news from Wellington. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. Subscribe to Newsletter --- ### Page: Media URL: https://vicai.org.nz/media/ Date: 2026-06-20T08:30:46.542Z Content: Media & Press We're available for media enquiries VicAI offers student perspectives and commentary on artificial intelligence in New Zealand. We work with journalists, researchers, and policymakers. Media Contact Email media@vicai.org.nz Spokespeople Arie Joe President Additional spokespeople available on request for specific topics. What We Can Comment On Student perspectives on AI that matter Our members include computer science, law, commerce, and arts students, offering interdisciplinary perspectives that go beyond the technical. Below are some of the areas we can provide commentary on, but we are not limited to these. If your topic relates to AI, we're happy to talk. 01 AI Safety & Ethics Responsible development, alignment, bias, governance frameworks, and the role of regulation in AI. 02 AI Technology & Research Large language models, machine learning, computer vision, and emerging AI capabilities and limitations. 03 AI & Society Indigenous data sovereignty, Te Tiriti perspectives, cultural considerations, and the social impact of AI in New Zealand. 04 AI in Industry How businesses and the public sector are adopting AI, from Wellington startups to government innovation. 05 Education & Careers Student pathways into AI, skills development, university education, and the future of work. 06 AI & Creative Industries The intersection of AI with design, media, music, and the arts, and what it means for creative professionals. Press Releases Latest releases No press releases yet. Watch this space. For additional information, contact media@vicai.org.nz Media Guidelines How to reference VicAI Organisation Name Use VicAI on first reference, followed by Victoria Artificial Intelligence Society in parentheses. Subsequent references may use VicAI alone. Attribution Please attribute quotes to the named spokesperson and their role. Example: Arie Joe, President of VicAI (Victoria Artificial Intelligence Society) University Affiliation VicAI is a student-run club affiliated with Te Herenga Waka, Victoria University of Wellington. We are not an official university department or research group. Student Perspectives Our commentary represents those of the Victoria Artificial Intelligence Society. For official university positions, please contact Victoria University of Wellington directly. Images & Brand Contact us for approved logos and brand assets. Please do not modify or crop VicAI branding without prior agreement. Working on a story? We're happy to provide commentary, connect you with student voices, or supply background on AI topics relevant to Wellington. media@vicai.org.nz Stay in the Loop Get our newsletter Events, workshops, and AI news from Wellington. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. Subscribe to Newsletter --- ### Page: Newsletter URL: https://vicai.org.nz/newsletter/ Date: 2026-06-20T08:30:46.542Z Content: Newsletter Stay in the loop Events, workshops, and AI news from Wellington. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. This is the newsletter signup, not the membership form. To join VicAI as a member, visit Join . First Name * required Please enter your first name Last Name * required Please enter your last name Email * required Please enter a valid email address Subscribe You're subscribed! Thanks for signing up. You'll hear from us soon. --- ### Page: Notices URL: https://vicai.org.nz/notices/ Date: 2026-06-20T08:30:46.542Z Content: Notices Announcements, updates, and news from VicAI. Stay across what's happening in the society. All Announcement Current Announcement Kiwi Neural Network Merger Kiwi Neural Network (KKN) has officially merged with and been absorbed into the Victoria Artificial Intelligence Society (VicAI). 20 February 2026 Announcement VicAI is launching We're building Wellington's student AI community. Sign ups are open, so join us to be part of our first events, workshops, and projects. 9 February 2026 Stay in the Loop Get our newsletter Events, workshops, and AI news from Wellington. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. Subscribe to Newsletter --- ### Page: Rules and Regulations URL: https://vicai.org.nz/rules-and-regulations/ Date: 2026-06-20T08:30:46.542Z Content: Rules and Regulations Our governing documents. Constitution, policies, procedures, and bylaws. All Regulations Policies Procedures General Category: general 44.806 Meeting Preparation Checklist Victoria Artificial Intelligence Society Size: 121 KB Type: PDF Download Category: procedure Checklist for dealing with motions Size: 181 KB Type: PDF Download Category: policy Commitee Role Descriptions Size: 132 KB Type: PDF Download Category: regulation Consitution Size: 3.3 MB Type: PDF Download Category: procedure Disciplinary procedure checklist Size: 181 KB Type: PDF Download Category: procedure Meeting procedure chart Size: 177 KB Type: PDF Download Category: policy Privacy Policy Size: 211 KB Type: PDF Download --- ### Page: Sponsors URL: https://vicai.org.nz/sponsors/ Date: 2026-06-20T08:30:46.542Z Content: Sponsors Our Partners We thank our industry partners for supporting VicAI with the resources and opportunities to advance AI for the Benefit of Everyone. No sponsors to display yet. Interested in partnering? Get in touch. Why Partner with Us Supporting the next generation of AI practitioners in Wellington Visibility at all VicAI events and workshops Logo placement on our website and materials Access to a talent pipeline of AI-skilled students Opportunity to host co-branded workshops or talks Direct connection to Wellington's university AI community Priority involvement in hackathon judging and mentoring Partner with VicAI Interested in sponsoring VicAI or collaborating on an event? We'd love to hear from you. contact@vicai.org.nz Stay in the Loop Get our newsletter Events, workshops, and AI news from Wellington. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. Subscribe to Newsletter --- ### Page: Team URL: https://vicai.org.nz/team/ Date: 2026-06-20T08:30:46.542Z Content: Our Team The people behind VicAI A student-run society powered by volunteers who care about AI. Executive Committee Arie Joe President Second-year Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence student. Passionate about making AI accessible to everyone from all backgrounds. RB Robert O'Brien Secretary HL Hayden Lance Treasurer Hayden is a final year Actuarial Science and Economics Student at Victoria University of Wellington. He is currently President of Vic Nats and previously their Treasurer Angela Roberts Secretary (Acting) Bazil Sanderson Committee Member Bazil is a second year student majoring in Artificial Intelligence. Joshua Simmons Committee Member Hi, my name is Joshua. I am a third-year Bachelor of Science student at Victoria University of Wellington, majoring in Artificial Intelligence and Cybersecurity with a minor in Data Science. I am passionate about leveraging AI to create meaningful, ethical, and human-centred solutions that improve decision-making and societal outcomes. In the long term, I aspire to work at the intersection of AI, data, and strategy, helping organisations adopt and implement responsible and impactful AI systems. I aim to contribute by promoting awareness of emerging AI trends, fostering an inclusive and collaborative community, and supporting initiatives that bridge the gap between technical innovation and real-world application. Tatenda Tavingeyi Committee Member Tavingeyi is a PhD candidate in museum and heritage studies at Victoria Wellington University; his research focuses on the integration of Indigenous knowledge systems and technoscience for sustainable heritage management, drawing lessons from Southern Africa and the Pacific region. He has experience in working with communities to shape localized ethical AI grounded in cultural values. He has worked with An AI of Our Own, an initiative of the Cambodia Living Arts Project Coordinator promoting Global South-centric AI rooted in local governance frameworks. Blending the passion for heritage preservation and people-centered ethical AI development, committed to the practical empowerment of Indigenous communities towards the development of an inclusive and culture-sensitive AI. Working Groups Six Teams. One Purpose. Each team contributes to the society in a unique way. Interested in joining a team? Get in touch. 01 Labs Collaborative AI research projects, reading groups, and paper discussions. 02 Education Resources, community discussions, blog posts, and reading lists. 03 Events & Media Creating experiences, awareness and event through visual and informative content. 04 Sponsorship & Partership Building industry relationships, opportunities and partnerships. 05 Safety & Governance Research and discussion on safe and ethical use of AI. 06 Outreach & Diversity Mentorship intiatives and programs. Want to be part of the team? We're always looking for enthusiastic people to join our working groups. No experience required, just curiosity. Apply Now Stay in the Loop Get our newsletter Events, workshops, and AI news from Wellington. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. Subscribe to Newsletter --- ### Page: Privacy Policy URL: https://vicai.org.nz/legal/privacy/ Date: 2026-06-20T08:30:46.542Z Content: About this policy At the Victoria Artificial Intelligence Society ('VicAI', 'We', 'Us', 'Our'), we take our privacy obligations seriously. We comply with the Privacy Act 2020 when dealing with personal information. Personal information is information about an identifiable individual (a natural person). This Privacy Policy explains how we will collect, use, disclose and store your personal information, and how you can exercise your rights in relation to your personal information. We may need to update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The most recent version will be published on our website. The change will apply from the date we upload the updated policy. This policy was last updated on 10 February 2026 . What personal information we collect We collect personal information about you. This may include your: (a) Name. (b) Contact details, such as your email address and phone number. (c) Student ID number. (d) Programme of study and year of study. (e) Photos and/or images in any video footage taken at club events. (f) Personal opinions or feedback you provide on our activities and events. Who we collect your personal information from We collect your personal information directly from you, where this is possible and practicable, usually when you join VicAI or register for an event. We may also collect your personal information: (a) from someone else, where you have authorised this; (b) from publicly available sources; (c) automatically, when you visit our website, such as your IP address, browser type, device information, and web pages you viewed. Some of this information may be collected using cookies and similar tracking technologies, including through third-party services such as Cloudflare Zaraz, Cloudflare Web Analytics, and Google Analytics (see "Third-party website services" below). Why we collect your personal information We collect your personal information for the following purposes: (a) to manage your membership of VicAI; (b) to communicate with you regarding club activities, events and opportunities; (c) to verify your eligibility for membership (e.g. confirming enrolment at Te Herenga Waka, Victoria University of Wellington); (d) to provide relevant information and updates about VicAI activities; (e) to allocate and apply for club funding from the University; (f) to improve our activities and events based on your feedback; (g) to protect and/or enforce our legitimate interests and comply with applicable laws; (h) for any other purpose authorised by you or by the Privacy Act 2020. If you do not provide us with some of the personal information we request, we may be unable to register you as a member or provide you with the full benefits of membership. Who we share your personal information with There may be times where we need to share your personal information with third parties. We will only disclose your personal information to: (a) Te Herenga Waka, Victoria University of Wellington, including the University Recreation Clubs Team, for the purposes of club registration, re-registration, funding allocation, and reporting. The University manages this information in accordance with its own Privacy Notice . Personalised member information is used for allocation of University funding to clubs. The University also reports on statistical information to the University community, but only after anonymising and aggregating the data first. No individual members will be identified. There are some other circumstances where the University may use or share personalised member information, for example responding to student health, safety or wellbeing events, as outlined in the University's Privacy Notice. (b) Third-party event platforms (e.g. Eventbrite, Luma) used to manage event registrations. (c) Third-party communication platforms (e.g. Discord, Slack, email services) used to communicate with members. (c.1) Third-party website service providers, as described in the "Third-party website services" section below, for the purposes of delivering, securing, and analysing use of our website. (d) Regulators, law enforcement bodies, government agencies, or other third parties where we consider it necessary to comply with applicable laws or regulations. Where possible and appropriate, we will notify you of this type of disclosure. (e) Other people or organisations, where authorised by you. We will not sell your personal information to anyone. How we store your personal information We store your personal information securely using University-supplied tools such as SharePoint, or in password-protected files accessible only to the VicAI committee. Access to member information is limited to current committee members who need it for club administration purposes. Third-party website services Our website uses the following third-party services: (a) Cloudflare CDN — Our website is delivered through Cloudflare's content delivery network. Cloudflare may process technical data such as your IP address, browser type, and request metadata to deliver and secure our website. For more information, see Cloudflare's Privacy Policy . (b) Cloudflare Zaraz — We use Cloudflare Zaraz to manage third-party scripts loaded on our website. Zaraz processes requests server-side through Cloudflare, which means fewer direct connections between your browser and third-party services. For more information, see Cloudflare's Privacy Policy . (c) Cloudflare Web Analytics — We use Cloudflare Web Analytics to understand how visitors use our website. Cloudflare Web Analytics is a privacy-focused analytics service that does not use client-side state (such as cookies) to collect data. For more information, see Cloudflare's Privacy Policy . (d) Google Analytics — We use Google Analytics to analyse website traffic and usage patterns. Google Analytics may use cookies and collect information such as your IP address, browser type, pages visited, and time spent on pages. You can opt out of Google Analytics by installing the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on . For more information, see Google's Privacy Policy . (e) Web3Forms — We use Web3Forms to process contact form submissions on our website. When you submit a form, your name, email address, and message content are sent to Web3Forms for delivery to us. For more information, see Web3Forms' Privacy Policy . How long we keep your personal information We will keep your personal information for as long as is reasonably necessary for the purposes described in this policy, generally for the duration of your membership and for a reasonable period afterwards to meet any reporting or funding obligations. After this period, we will delete or anonymise your personal information. If you wish to access or correct your personal information Subject to certain grounds for refusal set out in the Privacy Act 2020, you have the right to ask for a copy of the personal information we hold about you, and to ask for your personal information to be corrected if you think it is wrong. How to contact us To exercise any of your rights in relation to your personal information, or to otherwise discuss this Privacy Policy, you can contact us in the following ways: Email: legal@vicai.org.nz You also have the right to make a complaint to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner if you think we have breached your privacy. You can contact the Office of the Privacy Commissioner at www.privacy.org.nz . --- ### Page: Terms and Conditions URL: https://vicai.org.nz/legal/terms/ Date: 2026-06-20T08:30:46.542Z Content: By viewing and using the VicAI website you are considered to agree to these terms and conditions without qualification. If you do not agree to be bound by these terms and conditions, you must stop accessing and using our website. We reserve the right to change these terms and conditions at any time by notifying users of the existence of the amended terms and conditions through our website. By continuing to access our website, you agree to be bound by the amended terms and conditions. 1. Privacy policy and personal information Use of our website may involve the collection of personal information. We maintain a privacy policy at vicai.org.nz/legal/privacy . You consent to the release of your personal information to us and third parties in connection with the uses contemplated by the privacy policy. If you have questions or comments about our privacy policy, please contact us at: legal@vicai.org.nz . 2. Users outside New Zealand Our website is operated by the Victoria Artificial Intelligence Society from New Zealand. The information on our website may not be appropriate or available for use in other jurisdictions. If you choose to access our website from a jurisdiction other than New Zealand, you do so on your own initiative and you are responsible for compliance with any applicable laws of that jurisdiction. 3. Copyright and trade marks We or our suppliers own copyright in the contents of our website. No part of our website may be distributed or copied for any commercial purpose and you are not permitted to incorporate the material or any part of it in any other work or publication (whether in hard copy, electronic or any other form) without our prior written consent. You may not frame any part of our website material by including advertising or other revenue generating material. Further, you may not remove or alter any trade marks or logos that appear on any material on our website. 4. Linking The contents of our website may include links to third party materials. We will not be responsible for the content of any linked sites or liable for any direct or indirect loss or damage suffered by you from accessing, using, relying on or trading with third parties. The linked sites are provided to you only as a convenience, and the inclusion of any linked site does not imply any endorsement of it by us or any association with its operators. We reserve the right to prohibit links to our website and you agree to remove or cease any link on our request. 5. Exclusion of liability To the fullest extent permitted by law, we exclude all liability for any loss or damage that results from your use of our website and any services we provide, including from all express and implied warranties and representations. We will not be responsible for errors or misstatements or be liable, whether in contract, tort (including negligence) or otherwise, for any loss or damage however caused (including indirect, consequential or special loss or damage, or loss of profits, loss of data, loss of anticipated savings or loss of opportunity). If you are a consumer using our website for non-business activities then nothing in these terms and conditions is intended to abrogate any rights you might have under the Consumer Guarantees Act 1993 (if any). 6. Indemnity You will take all necessary action to defend and indemnify us and our committee members, volunteers and agents against all costs, expenses and damages incurred in connection with any claim brought by a third party against us that arise from a breach by you of any of these terms and conditions. 7. Information and material The content on this site is provided for general information only. You should obtain professional or specialist advice before taking or refraining from any action on the basis of any information on this site. 8. Entire agreement These terms and conditions, in conjunction with our privacy policy , form the entire agreement between us and you relating to our website. 9. General provisions If at any time we do not enforce any of these terms or conditions, or grant you time or any other indulgence, we will not be construed as having waived that term or condition or our rights to later enforce that, or any other, term or condition. Further, if any part or provision of these terms and conditions is considered to be invalid, unenforceable or in conflict with the law, that part or provision is deemed to be modified by a provision which, as far as possible, accomplishes the original purpose of that part or provision. The remaining terms and conditions will continue to be binding on the parties. These terms and conditions are governed by and will be construed in accordance with the laws of New Zealand and you submit to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of New Zealand. How to contact us If you have any questions about these terms and conditions, you can contact us at: legal@vicai.org.nz . --- ### Page: Kiwi Neural Network Merger URL: https://vicai.org.nz/notices/kiwi-neural-network-merger-announcement/ Date: 2026-06-20T08:30:46.539Z Content: ← All Notices Announcement Kiwi Neural Network Merger 20 February 2026 We are pleased to announce that Kiwi Neural Network (KKN) has officially merged with and been absorbed into the Victoria Artificial Intelligence Society (VicAI). We wish to extend our sincere gratitude to Zackeriah Tai and Susie Hsing, co-founders of Kiwi Neural Network, whose vision and leadership built a thriving community from the ground up. "This decision was made to consolidate resources and provide a more unified AI community for students and AI society. We believe Arie Joe the president of VicAI will enhance event quality, resolve going concern, and avoid duplication of initiatives across similar clubs," said Zackeriah Tai, co-founder of Kiwi Neural Network. We also thank all existing members, contributors, and supporters of KKN. Your commitment to the AI community does not go unnoticed. All KKN members are welcomed into the Victoria Artificial Intelligence Society with immediate effect. We are committed to honouring the legacy of Kiwi Neural Network while building something even greater together. If you have any questions regarding this merger or your membership, please do not hesitate to reach out via email at contact@vicai.org.nz We deeply appreciate your continued partnership and support, and are thrilled to continue this journey with you. Share this notice Copy the link and send it to someone who'd be interested. Copy Link ← Back to All Notices --- ### Page: About URL: https://vicai.org.nz/about/ Date: 2026-06-20T08:30:46.539Z Content: About Us Our background and purpose Our mission is to engage with AI for the benefit of everyone. VicAI is built on the belief that artificial intelligence should be shaped and used for the benefit of everyone, including every industry, every discipline, and every community. Our Story Background & Purpose VicAI was founded in 2026 by students from Victoria University of Wellington, the goal is to bring together curious and passionate people across diverse backgrounds into a community that would collaborate and contribute to AI for a better future. What defines us is our culture of openness. Our community is committed to the learning, building, and sharing of knowledge and skills. We each share the same passion to build together and help each other grow. Wellington's tech ecosystem is thriving. Companies like Xero, TradeMe, and Soul Machines were born here. The government is actively adopting AI across public services. We believe students should be at the table, not just as future employees, but as critical thinkers shaping how AI is used in Wellington. To make this possible, VicAI is structured into six teams: Labs, Education, Events & Media, Sponsorship & Partnership, Safety & Governance, and Outreach & Diversity. Each team contributes in a unique way, from running projects and workshops to leading ethical discussions, community engagement, and mentorship initiatives. Together, we create a space where anyone can learn, research, build and engage critically with AI, openly and collaboratively. Our mission is to make AI accessible, so that anyone, regardless of background, has the opportunity to safely and purposefully shape and influence AI and its role in the world. AI for the Benefit of Everyone - built together. Leadership Executive Committee Arie Joe President Second-year Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence student. Passionate about making AI accessible to everyone from all backgrounds. RB Robert O'Brien Secretary HL Hayden Lance Treasurer Hayden is a final year Actuarial Science and Economics Student at Victoria University of Wellington. He is currently President of Vic Nats and previously their Treasurer Angela Roberts Secretary (Acting) Bazil Sanderson Committee Member Bazil is a second year student majoring in Artificial Intelligence. Joshua Simmons Committee Member Hi, my name is Joshua. I am a third-year Bachelor of Science student at Victoria University of Wellington, majoring in Artificial Intelligence and Cybersecurity with a minor in Data Science. I am passionate about leveraging AI to create meaningful, ethical, and human-centred solutions that improve decision-making and societal outcomes. In the long term, I aspire to work at the intersection of AI, data, and strategy, helping organisations adopt and implement responsible and impactful AI systems. I aim to contribute by promoting awareness of emerging AI trends, fostering an inclusive and collaborative community, and supporting initiatives that bridge the gap between technical innovation and real-world application. Tatenda Tavingeyi Committee Member Tavingeyi is a PhD candidate in museum and heritage studies at Victoria Wellington University; his research focuses on the integration of Indigenous knowledge systems and technoscience for sustainable heritage management, drawing lessons from Southern Africa and the Pacific region. He has experience in working with communities to shape localized ethical AI grounded in cultural values. He has worked with An AI of Our Own, an initiative of the Cambodia Living Arts Project Coordinator promoting Global South-centric AI rooted in local governance frameworks. Blending the passion for heritage preservation and people-centered ethical AI development, committed to the practical empowerment of Indigenous communities towards the development of an inclusive and culture-sensitive AI. FAQ Frequently Asked Questions Who can join VicAI? VicAI is open to all, regardless of your background. By joining our community you are invited to all of the events we host. Note: this is for becoming a general community member, the VicAI committee currently looks for students and staff of the Victoria University of Wellington only. How can I engage with VicAI beyond the regular events? If you are interested in getting involved with VicAI on a deeper and more regular basis, we are always looking for new members to join our six teams and initiatives. Whether it's Labs, Education, Events & Media, Sponsorship & Partnership, Safety & Governance, or Outreach & Diversity, if there is a team that stands out to you or you would like to suggest something new, please get in touch ! Who runs VicAI? The society is entirely supported and operated by students at Te Herenga Waka, Victoria University of Wellington. It exists as a self-governing community for those with a passion for AI and innovation. I am not a student or staff member at Victoria University of Wellington, can I still engage? While our society prioritises university students in most of our initiatives and projects, we still welcome everyone to engage with our resources and events. We aim to be as open as possible, which also means publishing our events, blogs, research projects and newsletters with as little barrier to entry as possible. Note: this is for becoming a general community member, the VicAI committee currently looks for students and staff of the Victoria University of Wellington only. Do I need to know how to code? Not at all. Many of our events are designed for beginners, and our Education team creates resources for all skill levels. Some of our members come from arts, law, and commerce backgrounds. AI is about more than code. Is there a membership fee? No. VicAI membership is free. We're funded and resourced through university clubs support, volunteers and industry sponsorships. Where do events take place? Most of our events are held on Kelburn Campus or Pipitea Campus. Some industry events and social gatherings happen outside campus in central Wellington. All venues are listed on each event's details. Can VicAI share or promote my event or initiative? In many cases, we do, if it aligns directly with our mission and outreach standards. VicAI selectively promotes external events, initiatives, and calls for participation that benefit our community, uphold our values, and meet defined eligibility criteria. Please send your request via our Contact Page . We are a company working in AI, can we collaborate with VicAI on an event? VicAI welcomes collaborations that align with our educational and community-oriented mission. While VicAI may co-host or support non-commercial, academically focused events with external organisations, we do not engage in events that serve primarily commercial or promotional purposes. Please send your request to via our Contact Page . We are a company working in AI, can we sponsor VicAI? VicAI welcomes sponsorship from companies and organisations working in AI and related fields. Sponsorship may support our talks, social events, workshops, and initiatives. Interested companies are welcome to get in touch . Stay in the Loop Get our newsletter Events, workshops, and AI news from Wellington. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. Subscribe to Newsletter --- ### Page: Trimester 1 Clubs Expo 2026 - Tuesday URL: https://vicai.org.nz/events/trimester-1-clubs-expo-2026-tuesday/ Date: 2026-06-20T08:30:46.501Z Content: ← All Events expo Trimester 1 Clubs Expo 2026 - Tuesday 24 FEB 2026 Time: 11:00 AM (11:00) – 3:00 PM (15:00) Location: Cotton Building Corridor, Kelburn Campus, Victoria University of Wellington Past Event Find us at the 2026 Clubs Expo at Victoria University of Wellington. Share this event Copy the link and send it to someone who'd be keen. Copy Link ← Back to All Events --- ### Page: How AI Is Reshaping Lobbying and Threatening Democracy URL: https://vicai.org.nz/blog/ai-lobbying-democracy-new-zealand/ Date: 2026-02-20T00:00:00.000Z Tags: ai-policy, democracy, lobbying, new-zealand Content: Artificial Intelligence is revolutionising lobbying, from corporates to parliamentary select committees. Large language models have capability to analyze legislation, draft persuasive communications, and flood existing pre-AI democratic processes with AI-generated content at an unprecedented scale. Efficiency gains may seem promising for legitimate advocacy, but these technologies threaten democratic representation, transparency, and accountability. The Usage of AI in Lobbying Large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT’s offerings can be implemented to monitor proposed legislation, assess the relevance to specific entities, and automatically draft persuasive submissions or letters to lawmakers [@RN65]. Research has showed that using “state-of-the-art” LLMs models from 2023 achieved a 70.9% accuracy rating in determining bill relevance, with performance significantly increasing as models improved [@RN65]. ‘PolicyMate’ and ‘Prismos’, are two commercially available products that exist and used by European lobbyists. They can transcribe committee hearings, analyse lengthy documents, and monitor developments in real-time [@RN60]. AI can enable psychographic profiling by analysing vast datasets from social media, browsing history, purchase history, and demographic information. This allows the crafting of hyper-personalized messages that exploit individual humanistic psychological traits, values, and fears. Political campaigns have already used AI to identify swing voters and deploy precisely framed “nudges” through targeted advertising, chatbots, and social media. These techniques are increasing adopted by lobbyists to influence lawmakers or electoral areas. Machine automation easily allows for fast and cost-efficient scalability [@RN61, @RN69]. AI can accelerate astroturfing, by manufacturing artificial public participation and opinion. Generative Text AI can easily produce unique and convincing public submissions and communications at scale, that could be used to create an illusion of widespread grassroots participation. [@RN65,@RN61,@RN63]. The 2017 net neutrality debate saw over 8 million comments made by bots flood the US Federal Communications Commission, modern AI can overcome detection by generating submissions unique enough to evade detection [@RN61]. New Zealand Parliament recently confronted this threat when select committee submissions were dismissed because they were allegedly AI generated [@RN64]. In 2023, the National Party (NZ) used AI to create imagery of people, fake healthcare worker and crime victims for attack advertisements. While the Act Party used AI imagery of Māori and Polynesian people without disclosure [@RN68,@RN67]. Deepfakes can be produced rapidly and at scale, and in these instances potentially creating cultural stereotypes while undermining voters’ ability to distinguish AI and non-AI generated content [@RN68]. Ethical Implications AI in Lobbying threatens the principle that elected officials should respond to genuine people. When legislators receive AI-generated communications indistinguishable from authentic citizen appeals, they lose their ability to gauge true public sentiment. Complicating an environment where most citizens don’t engage in democracy to the fullest extend [@RN69]. Law is a form of information that is derived from information. When such derived information is AI-generated, AI undoubtedly has an influence on law [@RN65]. Lobbyists using AI currently face no requirements to disclose such usage in most jurisdictions [@RN63,@RN60]. Only Canada and the European Union mandate disclosure of I usage in lobbying activities [@RN63]. Even when such content is labeled as AI, they still have an influence. LLMs operate as a Blackbox, they currently cannot explain their hidden reasoning to committees or commissions [@RN61]. For users of LLMs such information doesn’t exist or cannot be created, therefore they cannot provide it, this argument can deflect responsibility away from users and towards AI companies. Such opacity makes accountability impossible and enables covert manipulation of democratic processes [@RN61,@RN63]. AI systems trained on biased data or simply human data, are aligned to such data, stereotypes are can be reflected by humans in data without classification or identification [@RN68,@RN63]. The New Zealand examples demonstrate how AI-generated imagery can reproduce offensive representations of people or groups [@RN68]. Research has shown that AI tools can systematically generate content reinforcing discrimination against marginalized communities, a concern when deployed to influence policies and law affecting such vulnerable communities or populations [@RN63]. If AI begins influencing lawmaking in ways not directly extending human intentions, it corrupts law’s fundamental role as information created by the expression of democratic values [@RN65]. The most concerning scenario involves AI eventually using law as training data to understand human preferences, but if AI influenced the creation of such laws, the entire alignment process becomes a circular and corrupted loop [@RN65]. This is a threat to democratic legitimacy. Societal Implications AI-powered micro-targeting enables different voters to received completely contradictory messages from the same political actor, each message unique to exploit that individual’s demographic fears and values [@RN61,@RN69]. This prevents shared reality; people lose the factual ground for debate. AI-powered lobbying traps people in “epistemic bubbles” where they only encounter targeted information reinforcing existing beliefs [@RN61]. To a certain extent basic social media algorithms already do this, but this combines with methods such as AI-generated hyper-personalized messaging. The effect intensifies political polarization and makes democratic compromise increasingly difficult [@RN69]. Perhaps the first major shock to “respectable” society regarding AI, was when it became known, soon after the public release of ChatGPT a major goal has been to detect AI-generated content. So far there are no reliable methods of detection, and as AI has developed so has it been harder to detect. The social impact may be generalized nihilism [@RN69]. When AI and non-AI content is indistinguishable, when politicians may be deepfaked, when public consultations become flood with bot submissions, the cognitive response becomes “believe nothing,” this is generalized nihilism [@RN69], as seen in David Seymour’s response to select committee submissions [@RN64]. This trust collapse corrodes the social cohesion essential for democratic societies to function. Declining trust in media, government and others, creases space for authoritarianism and conspiracy theories to increase in prevalence [@RN61,@RN69] AI-powered Lobbying exponentially increasing existing power imbalances [@RN65,@RN63]. Paid lobby firms, corporations, and well funded organizations possess resources to use and implement AI in advocacy, that ordinary citizens and community organizations often cannot match. A single entity could generate thousands of personalized lobbying communications in minutes, once the process is setup; individual citizens tend to only write one submission [@RN65,@RN69]. This threatens to transform democracy into a type of algorithmic oligarchy, where policy and law becomes responsive primarily to those who can afford AI-powered lobbying or advocacy activities [@RN63]. As AI becomes more agentic in lobbying functions, we risk creating democratic processes where humans are increasingly peripheral [@RN65,@RN64]. The “dead internet theory” exists, I propose the “dead select committee theory” where bots are deployed to write select committee submissions which are then read by other bots, with summaries of advice considered by MPs acting like bots themselves [@RN64]. This dehumanization of political engagement, reducing citizens to statistics for algorithmic processing, fundamentally contradicts democratic values of deliberation, persuasion and humanistic nature [@RN61,@RN64]. ---