Nelson a “blueprint” for building community AI capacity
Friday 20 September, 2024
Although a small, regional city known better for its food and wine, forestry and tourism, Nelson Tasman is emerging as an AI hub and is setting the standard for something a little more unexpected – a blueprint for building community artificial intelligence (AI) capability across New Zealand.
Although a small, regional city known better for its food and wine, forestry and tourism, Nelson Tasman is emerging as an AI hub and is setting the standard for something a little more unexpected – a blueprint for building community artificial intelligence (AI) capability across New Zealand.
The Nelson AI Sandbox, a not-for-profit subsidiary of the Nelson AI Institute, has set out to build AI capacity for the Nelson Tasman region through educating, empowering and adapting the community to artificial intelligence, all free to visitors of the AI Sandbox or its website.
Nelson AI Sandbox co-founder, Richard Brudvik-Lindner, says the space is a world-leading centre for free hands-on access to AI tools and personal AI tutoring, which he believes could be a model for other Kiwi towns and cities.
“There is a pressing need for New Zealand communities, big and small, to fully understand, explore, and cultivate the many opportunities AI presents, and examine the challenges and concerns it poses, and to use this knowledge and those skills to innovate, but also to future-proof their community.
“We developed the AI Sandbox to de-mystify AI and foster a more confident and innovative attitude towards using it by everyone in the community. It is not just for businesses, and not just for young people, though both are important to our mission. The overall aim is to make the Nelson Tasman region a more prosperous, equitable and vital place by enabling and upskilling residents, while incubating our emerging AI sector.”
Today at the AI Sandbox’s temporary location at the Mahitahi Colab on Hardy Street, a wide array of Nelsonians told their AI story, together demonstrating just how far-reaching the Nelson community’s AI uptake is, and how the Sandbox is at the centre of Nelson’s own centre of AI excellence.
Presenters included Nelson College students, businesspeople, technology experts, AI researchers and entrepreneurs, iwi leaders, local government and polytechnic educators.
Topics discussed included Al leadership in economic sectors, AI innovation, start-up incubation and commercialisation, AI research in the health sector, AI empowerment of iwi organisations, AI customisation and personalisation on the personal level, AI integration into the education sector via NMIT - the first polytechnic in the nation to offer AI prompt engineering for Trades Academy, AI adaptation and integration by local businesses in operations and product offerings, and AI-assistance in local government service delivery exemplified by Nelson City Council’s AI use in the 2024 Long Term Plan process.
“After six successful months engaging with more than 6,000 people, it was time to celebrate and showcase our community-led model,” says Brudvik-Lindner.
“Through the experiences of people across sectors in our community, we can demonstrate that, first, Nelson is an emerging AI hub and centre of excellence in New Zealand, and second, that Nelson can be a test-bed for further central government-led AI innovation, and finally, that other communities can look to Nelson as a model for their own AI initiatives. This could look like first expanding the remit of the AI Sandbox, and then further, piloting AI-capacity building programmes, which other communities can roll out.
“We see AI as a critical vehicle for helping Nelson address its productivity and economic growth problems, and building social cohesion in our intergenerational and equal-access AI space. We undoubtedly could be a blueprint to help other communities accomplish similar goals, and accelerate the nation’s path toward productive, constructive use of AI at the same time.”
ENDS
About Nelson AI Sandbox
The Nelson AI Sandbox in Nelson’s CBD is an inclusive not-for-profit educational subsidiary of the Nelson AI Institute, running a discovery space in the Nelson CBD where anyone can have a free hands-on AI experience and learn about AI and its applications. In its first six months the Sandbox has engaged with 6,000 plus people in the community, has conducted free public presentations and workshops for more than 500 people and has run dozens of bespoke AI training and AI familiarisation sessions for multiple Nelson organisations.
AI Sandbox showcase speakers
Mark Houghton-Brown, Nelson AI Institute – AI innovation
Julian Maclaren, Nelson AI Institute, AI scientist - AI innovation
David Brydon, NMIT student- AI research in nursing
Eugene Whakahoehoe, –Ngāti Kuia – AI iwi leadership
Arturo Neale and Finn Palmer, Nelson College – AI customisation
Bob Cumming, Marine AI – AI commercialisation
Chris Rodley, SnapCore – AI leadership in intersecting commercial sectors
Ali Kahwaji, NMIT – AI integration into education
Emma Thompson, Publik Agency – AI business adaptation
J Norness, SpaWorld – AI business adaptation
Nicky McDonald, NCC – AI in local government