Last month we looked at how leaders are beginning to respond to a more complex world. This month the focus shifts to what is being built within it - new trade relationships, stronger security foundations, and the kind of trust that allows innovation to take hold.
The signing of the NZ-India Free Trade Agreement in late April marked a significant moment for New Zealand's trade future. This edition introduces Aspen NZ's new report on what the agreement opens up for businesses considering India, drawing on our NZ-India dialogue series and the direct experience of our panellists, who have already built successful businesses there. It is a relationship worth understanding well, and the opportunity it opens is considerable.
Alongside that, this edition looks at cybersecurity governance in an age of AI, and at a global study on how society feels about breakthrough science, and why trust matters more than technical knowledge in determining whether innovation succeeds:
Global Affairs: The Long Game - New Zealand, India and the Opportunity Ahead
Critical Conversations: Cybersecurity in a Post-Mythos World
Connected Communities: How Society Feels About Breakthrough Science
Upcoming Events: National Security Dialogues: Sector roundtables
Enjoy this edition. It is encouraging to see Kiwi businesses finding new opportunities in India and building genuine success.
Ngā mihi - Christine and the Aspen Institute NZ team
Global Affairs
The Long Game: New Zealand, India and the Opportunity Ahead
The NZ-India Free Trade Agreement, signed on 27 April 2026, is the most significant shift in the bilateral trade relationship in decades. For New Zealand businesses, it opens doors in sectors including horticulture, technology, fintech, and services, while the customs improvements alone will make a significant difference for exporters day to day. But market access and market success are different things. The businesses that have already built operations in India are consistent in their advice, that the country rewards patience, long-term thinking, and investment in relationships before commercial returns. Aspen NZ has been tracking this relationship since 2023, hosting a series of forums in partnership with the Ananta Aspen Centre in New Delhi. Our new report brings together the insights of people who know the market, a breakdown of what the FTA contains, and a practical guide for businesses considering India. Read the full report here.
Critical Conversations
Cybersecurity in a Post-Mythos World - Upgrading Defences and Improving Governance
Last month's Wellington Security Dialogue concluded that security conversations urgently need to move from the back office to the board room. Aspen Digital's latest report offers a straight-forward guide to manage emerging threats.
Cybersecurity in a Post-Mythos World considers the AI-accelerated threats facing organisations and what leaders need to do in response. The report highlights how AI has dramatically lowered the skills required to exploit existing vulnerabilities, with Anthropic's Mythos model a chilling example of the speed in which AI can exploit software flaws, much faster than humans can fix them. The report offers board members and executives a set of governance questions to assess their organisation's preparedness, alongside technical steps management can take now. For those following Aspen NZ's Security Dialogues this year, or concerned about their organisations security, it is a useful next step.
Connected Communities
How Society Feels About Breakthrough Science
Breakthrough science is advancing rapidly, yet these advances will only achieve impact if people are ready to embrace them. That tension is visible in a recent report, informed by the Aspen Institute Science and Society Programme, examining public attitudes toward AI in healthcare, cell and gene therapies, new genomic techniques in agriculture, and cultivated meat across the United States, Germany and China. The findings are nuanced - the same person who embraces AI in medicine may draw a firm line at cultivated meat, However, one conclusion stands out, that acceptance depends more on trust than technical knowledge, and whether innovation feels aligned with people's values. The Science and Society Programme's Innovator's Toolkit, included in the report, offers a useful guide to building trust in science, that can equally be applied to any organisation undergoing change. Find the full report here.
Coming Up - Local
Global Affairs
National Security Dialogues -
Sector Roundtables
Aspen NZ's National Security Dialogues bring senior business and government leaders together in a series of private, sector-focused roundtables to examine how geopolitical change, technological disruption and shifting trade dynamics are reshaping the industries that are crucial for New Zealand's prosperity. Sessions will be delivered in partnership with sector sponsors, between June and September 2026. If you are interested in taking part or supporting a dialogue, contact us.
Building on the momentum of last year’s Aspen Otago National Security Forum, Aspen NZ is developing an expanded Aspen NZ Security Forum in Queenstown this October focused on technology, economic security, infrastructure and geopolitical change. Designed as a highly interactive Aspen-style gathering rather than a traditional conference, it will bring together leaders across business, investment, government and frontier technology from New Zealand, Australia and international Aspen networks.
More details on themes, partners and participation will be announced in coming weeks.
.png?upscale=true&width=518&upscale=true&name=Sector%20Roundtables%20Banner%20(900%20x%20600%20mm).png)
