By Peter Nelson
Managing Director, Datacom New Zealand
For years, technology headlines have been dominated by AI breakthroughs, rapid cloud adoption and relentless cybersecurity threats. As we move into 2026, the conversation is changing.
In boardrooms, the focus is no longer on what is possible. It is on what will truly transform the business, deliver measurable gains and position organisations to compete in an environment where both capital and talent are constrained.
From my vantage point working with leading New Zealand enterprises and government agencies, four trends stand out as defining the technology landscape in 2026.
1. AI moves from proof-of-concept to enterprise scale
AI adoption has surged. Our 2025 State of AI Index revealed that 87% of organisations now use AI – up from 48% in 2023. Yet only 12% have implemented AI across their entire organisation.
Scaling AI is far harder than starting small. Building a prototype with consumer tools takes days. Turning that into a robust enterprise-grade capability is a different challenge.
Why? Data readiness, integration complexity, regulatory compliance, security considerations and a shortage of enterprise AI skills. Without a coordinated strategy, AI risks becoming a series of disconnected experiments.
The next two years will mark the shift from hype to transformation. At Datacom, we are seeing organisations embed AI into core operations – from AI-driven chat systems in agriculture that enable instant decisions to automation tools that cut documentation and testing time. As successful deployments emerge, particularly in health, expect AI to rise to the top of strategic agendas.
2. Agentic AI becomes the productivity engine
Generative AI grabbed early headlines, but the bigger productivity story is agentic AI – systems that interpret context, make decisions and execute multi-step tasks autonomously.
At Datacom, our teams are already deploying agentic AI at scale with measurable impact including up to 70% faster delivery timelines and 30–50% cost savings across major application modernisation projects.
The services sector, which makes up 66% of New Zealand’s GDP, is well placed to benefit. Imagine AI agents embedded into councils via Datacom’s Datascape platform, automating repetitive tasks and saving dozens of staff-weeks annually.
This is not about replacing people. Productivity gains come when human and technical systems complement each other. Human-centred design, workforce participation and holistic thinking will be essential if New Zealand is to remain competitive in an AI-driven economy.
3. Cybersecurity intensifies under AI and geopolitics
Late 2025 saw the first large-scale cyberattack executed by AI. It was a wake-up call.
AI-driven threats now top our State of Cybersecurity Index, surpassing traditional attack vectors. External threats from state and criminal actors are one dimension.
Internal risks are another — from shadow AI usage to employees entering sensitive data into unsecured tools.
Yet AI is also an asset. Security teams are using it to detect anomalies in near real time, neutralise threats before they materialise and automate incident responses. The cybersecurity arms race is now an AI arms race.
4. Extracting maximum value from existing assets
Despite optimism, many organisations remain cautious. Our 2025 Cloud & Infrastructure Report showed growth, survival and talent retention as top priorities – not greenfield projects.
The focus is shifting to optimisation. The initial rush to the cloud is over. The challenge now is using cloud platforms to drive outcomes through automation, predictive analytics and smarter customer engagement. Intelligent use of existing assets – data lakes, infrastructure and SaaS investments – will dominate technology conversations in 2026.
The leadership imperative
For senior leaders, the message is clear: technology strategy in 2026 must bridge the gap between experimentation and transformation. This means:
■ Creating AI and cloud roadmaps that span the entire organisation
■ Pairing human talent with AI to unlock productivity without eroding trust or culture
■ Treating cybersecurity as a strategic capability, not an insurance policy
■ Measuring ROI against growth, efficiency and customer value.
The organisations that thrive in 2026 will move with speed and discipline – scaling proven innovations, optimising existing investments and keeping people at the centre of technological change.
