2020 New Zealand Hi-Tech Awards – Finalists Announced

A record number of people gathered “virtually” from around the country a short time ago to hear the finalists in the 2020 NZ Hi-Tech Awards announced. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, for the first time the Hi-Tech Awards finalists announcement was live streamed rather than announced at the planned physical events.

Entries this year have come from right across the country and this is reflected in the line-up of finalists this year, according to Erin Wansbrough, Chair of the Hi-Tech Trust, who says the standard of entries continues to grow every year.

“This year’s finalists span the full spectrum of the hi-tech sector and the country and the level of innovative tech products and solutions continues to astound us all. It’s awesome to not only see the quality of the entries but also the diversity amongst the entrants.” says Wansbrough.

Several of the local and international judges have commented that the quality of the entrants is at an all-time high this year along with the volume of entries across many categories. They predict that the next phase of judging will prove even more challenging as they select the winners from such a strong pool of finalists.

The local judges are joined by a world class line up of international judges that include Bill Reichert, Pascal Finette, Rohit Shukla, Savannah Peterson, Claudia Batten, Katherine Corich, Craig Fenton, Axel Boye-Moler, Arama Kukutai, Kristy Traill, Emily Close, Pat Kenealy, Richard Keyse, Armand David, Jane Frankland and Andy Lark.

“The last few weeks have been particularly challenging for the judges as they have had to deal with all things Covid-19 related and also work their way through judging the Awards. We are truly thankful to all our judges both here in New Zealand and around the world who give of their own time to assist us with judging during this difficult period.” says Wansbrough.

With so much uncertainty around Covid-19 continuing to impact everybody the decision has been made that the up and coming panel judging will now take place remotely instead of the normal face-to-face judging. “We believe that it’s critical the Hi-Tech Awards programme continues but with the new restrictions on travel and gatherings in place a move to remote judging is a logical move. As with the announcement of the finalists we will lead by example as an industry and use the technology available to facilitate the final round of judging.” says Wansbrough.

The Hi-Tech Awards Gala Dinner scheduled for the 22nd of May will now take place later in the year and more details will be announced shortly.

The 2020 Hi-Tech Awards finalists are:

PwC Hi-Tech Company of the Year

Crimson Education

ezyVet

Fingermark

Harmoney

Serko

Spidertracks

Coretex Hi-Tech Emerging Company of the Year

Fuel 50

JAVLN

RedShield

Taska Prosthetics

Tradify

NZ Growth Capital Partners Hi-Tech Start-Up Company of the Year

Dawn Aerospace

Emergency Q

FileInvite

Joyous

IBM Most Inspiring Individual Award

Janene Crossan

Michelle Dickinson

Bruce Gordon

Mitchell Pham

Serge van Dam

Callaghan Innovation Maori Hi-Tech Company of the Year

Emergency Q

Kiwa Digital

NZ Trade Group

Plink Software

Duncan Cotterill Innovative Hi-Tech Software Solution Award

Orbica

PaySauce

Raygun

RedShield

Rocos

Kiwibank Hi-Tech Innovative Services Award

Beca

Blackhawk

Darkscope International

Emergency Q

Orbica

Endace Innovative Hi-Tech Hardware Product Award

Dawn Aerospace

IMAGR

Manta5

Shotover Camera Systems

Tectonus

Paymark Best Contribution to the NZ Tech Sector by an Internationally Headquartered Company

Humanatix

IBM

NZTE Best Hi-Tech Solution for the Agritech Sector

BBC Technologies

Compac

PaySauce

Regen

Xero Hi-Tech Young Achiever

Jamie Beaton

Ezel Kokcu

Michael Lovegrove

Terry Miller

Craig Piggott

Stefan Powell

Sian Simpson

Ian White

Most Innovative Deep Tech Solution

ArcActive

Mint Innovation

Tectonus

ATEED Most Innovative Hi-Tech Creative Technology Solution

IMAGR

Umajin

Weta Workshop

Visa Best Hi-Tech Solution for the Public Good

BRANZ

Malaghan Institute

Precision Driven Health

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