Amazon and Microsoft are battling it out over a $10bn opportunity to build the US military its first “war cloud” computing system. But Amazon’s early hopes of a shock-and-awe victory may be slipping away.

Formally called the Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure plan, or Jedi, the military’s computing project would store and process vast amounts of classified data, allowing the Pentagon to use artificial intelligence to speed up its war planning and fighting capabilities. The defense department hopes to award the winner-take-all contract as soon as August. Oracle and IBM were eliminated at an earlier round of the contract competition.

Read more

Call for Entries

Entries are now being accepted for the 2019 An Angel at My Table event, a pitching competition open to all comers.

If you – or someone you know – is:

• an emerging or growing software, SaaS or mobile app company looking for investment
• keen to practice your pitch and negotiation skills in a fun, supportive environment
• keen to network with entrepreneurs and investors in the software, SaaS and mobile app sectors

…we’d love to hear from you. Entry is quick and easy, and there is no entry fee.

3-4 finalists will be chosen to pitch to our panel of three experienced angel investors at the NZSA dinner on Tuesday 13 August.

For our finalists we’ll be looking for businesses:

• with an idea, working concept or product in the software, SaaS or mobile app space
• with five or less employees
• looking to scale rapidly and establish themselves as a long-term, sustainable businesses
• with strong potential for commercial success
• looking for investment, with a plan for why investment is needed.

How to enter:

• Prepare no more than one page highlighting your idea and why you should be one of our finalists, and attach your punchiest pitch deck.
• Send applications to pip.gilbert@nzsa.org.nz with the subject ‘NZSA Angel at My Table Entry: Company Name’
• Closing date for entries: 5pm, Wednesday 31 July

Finalists notified: Monday 5 August

Event details: An Angel at My Table, Tuesday 13 August 2018 (5.30pm start) at Glengarry’s Wine Room, cnr Wellesley and Sale Streets, Auckland. Includes a wine tasting hosted by Glengarry’s and complimentary dinner ticket for the presenter.  Each pitch must be no more than five minutes followed by five minutes’ QnA with the angel panel.

Here’s the boring legal stuff
This competition is intended to be an informal, light-hearted, and enjoyable evening. We’ll keep the rules simple, and act fairly and impartially. Whilst there may be a small prize for the winner, we’re not experts running a formal competition. Enjoy yourself, join us for dinner and some wine, meet some great people and hopefully have a few laughs.

The Market Measures survey benchmarks the sales and marketing activity of New Zealand’s technology companies, providing you with useful information for planning your sales and marketing strategies. By participating in the study you can compare your company’s performance against your peers and US counterparts.

The survey closes at the end of the day on Thursday 13 September 2018.

Take the survey

Deadline for entries 5pm, Friday 20 July

Entries are now being accepted for the 2018 An Angel at My Table event, a ‘Dragons Den’ type competition open to all comers.

If you – or someone you know – is:

• an emerging or growing software, SaaS or mobile app company looking for investment
• keen to practice your pitch and negotiation skills in a fun, supportive environment
• keen to network with entrepreneurs and investors in the software, SaaS and mobile app sectors

…we’d love to hear from you. Entry is quick and easy, and there is no entry fee.

Four finalists will be chosen to pitch to our Dragons’ Den-style panel of three experienced angel investors at the NZSA dinner on Tuesday 14 August. Finalists will be provided with a personal pitching coach to help them prepare for the big night.

For our finalists we’ll be looking for businesses:

• with an idea, working concept or product in the software, SaaS or mobile app space
• with five or less employees
• looking to scale rapidly and establish themselves as a long-term, sustainable businesses
• with strong potential for commercial success
• looking for investment, with a plan for why investment is needed.

How to enter:

• Prepare no more than two pages highlighting your idea and why you should be one of our finalists, and attach your punchiest pitch deck
• Send applications to Pip.Gilbert@eroad.com with the subject NZSA Angel at My Table Entry: Company Name
• Closing date for entries: 5pm, Friday 20  July

Finalists notified: Wednesday 25 July 2018
Dates for mentoring, pitch practice and deadline for presentation slides to be agreed with your mentor.

Event details: An Angel at My Table, Tuesday 14 August 2018 (5.30pm start) at Glengarry’s Wine Room, cnr Wellesley and Sale Streets, Auckland. Includes a wine tasting hosted by Glengarry’s and dinner for the presenter plus a support person. Five minute pitch and five minutes’ angel negotiation per entrant.

Here’s the boring legal stuff
This competition is intended to be an informal, light-hearted, and enjoyable evening. We’ll keep the rules simple, and act fairly and impartially. Although prize money is available, we’re not experts running a formal competition. Enjoy yourself, join us for dinner and some wine, meet some great people and hopefully have a few laughs.

NZ’s Financial Market’s Authority recently released guidance on the regulation of ICOs under NZ securities laws – in particular under the Financial Markets Conduct Act 2013 (FMCA). This follows a spate of similar guidance releases by securities regulators around the world. Read more

A new piece of legislation may mean changes are required to your legal templates. The Contract and Commercial Law Act 2017 (CCLA) came into force on 1 September 2017. The CCLA repeals and consolidates a number of commercial statutes that are commonly referred to in standard contract templates, including the Contracts (Privity) Act 1982, the Sale of Goods Act 1908 and the Sale of Goods (United Nations Convention) Act 1994. Read more

Have you ever tried to send money to family and friends overseas? Despite our increasingly global society, cross-border payments can still be a time-consuming and costly process. About half of the world’s international payments include major global currencies and flow through key banking corridors, where inter-bank processes are well-established and work reasonably efficiently. Read more

The Market Measures survey benchmarks the sales and marketing activity of New Zealand’s technology companies, providing you with useful information for planning your sales and marketing strategies. By participating in the study you can compare your company’s performance against your peers and US counterparts. You will be emailed the results of the study, including the final report due out in October 2017 (worth $375), resources like eBooks, infographics and videos, and the opportunity to attend events nationwide discussing Market Measures results and implications.

The survey closes at the end of the day on Thursday 5 October.

Take the survey

An Angel at My Table – winners
A great night was had by all last night, as a full house watched, and along with our three ‘dragons’ judged four early stage businesses pitch for investment money. Thank you to all our finalists.

Our four finalists were:
Broadband Compare
Just Roboser
Spotpark
Squawk Squad

The overall winner: Broadband Compare

The People’s Choice winner: Squawk Squad

A huge thanks to our three ‘dragons’:
Rudi Bublitz (Flying Kiwi Angels)
Debra Hall (Ice Angels)
Heath Milligan (Flying Kiwi Angels)

The NZSA Annual General Meeting 2017 will take place at 5.30pm on Tuesday 13 June 2017, prior to the June networking dinner. The AGM will be held at the Glengarry Wine Tasting Room, Cnr Wellesley and Sale Streets. Everyone is welcome to attend but only NZSA members hold voting rights.

Agenda

• Approval of the Agenda
• Approval of the minutes of the previous AGM
• President’s Report
• Financial Statements
• Election of the committee
• General Business’