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The She Sharp newsletter team sincerely apologises for the error in the subject line of our earlier email, which incorrectly labeled the June newsletter as the May edition. Please find the corrected June newsletter below. |
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| Building the Next Generation of Tech Talent |
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| | | June has been a big month for She Sharp as we doubled down on next-generation training and invested in the tech talent coming through our schools and communities. Together with Peyvand Academy and the Ministry of Education, we delivered two Youth Tech Series workshops focused on AI, electronics, and “little engineers” – creating spaces where tamariki could experiment, play, and see themselves as future technologists. It was energising to watch young people light up as they connected abstract ideas like artificial intelligence to hands-on circuits, coding exercises, and real-world problem solving. This work sits at the heart of She Sharp’s mission: building a diverse pipeline into STEM by making tech visible, accessible, and culturally grounded from an early age. Looking ahead, we’re excited to continue this momentum with our upcoming event in partnership with MYOB, where we’ll explore how AI is reshaping the way teams work, deliver, and grow. I’d love to see many of you there – bring your questions, your curiosity, and your ideas about how we can keep building an inclusive tech future together. |
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| Spotlight: Working smarter with the application of AI in workspace! 🚀 |
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| In July, She Sharp is collaborating with MYOB to deliver an interactive workshop focused on the practical application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the technology workplace. This event will explore how AI is helping MYOB teams work smarter, solve problems faster, and deliver greater value to customers. Bringing together students and professionals from development, product, and business teams, the session will provide insights into real-world AI applications across a modern technology organisation. The workshop will feature a speaker presentation and an engaging hands-on activity, showcasing how AI is transforming the Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC). Participants will gain an understanding of how AI is being applied across various business functions within MYOB, while also developing an AI mindset by exploring both the opportunities and challenges associated with AI adoption. A key highlight of the event is a collaborative AI problem-solving exercise, where participants will work alongside mentors from different MYOB teams to put ideas into practice and explore innovative solutions to real-world challenges. Event Details 📅 Date: Thursday, 30 July 2026
🕔 Time: 5:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.
📍 Venue: MYOB, 8/50 Albert Street, Auckland CBD, Auckland 1010 This event provides an excellent opportunity for participants to learn from industry professionals, gain practical exposure to AI applications, and understand how emerging technologies are shaping the future of work in the technology sector.
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| Spotlight: AI Hackathon Festival 2026 |
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| On 7–8 August 2026, She Sharp is collaborating with AI Forum to host the AI Hackathon 2026 at AUT City Campus. This two-day, in-person event will bring together students, professionals, and AI enthusiasts to develop innovative AI-enabled solutions that address real-world challenges aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Participants will work in teams throughout the event. On Day 1, teams will be formed, problem statements will be defined, and participants will begin designing and developing their solutions. On Day 2, teams will refine their solutions and present their final pitches to a panel of judges. Each venue will select one winning team to advance to the national judging stage. Four national finalist teams will then be invited to present their solutions at the Aotearoa AI Summit 2026. No prior hackathon experience is required. Approximately one-third of participants are expected to be first-time hackathon attendees. Mentors from AUT and industry partners will be available throughout the event to provide guidance and support.
Event Details
Dates and Times Venue |
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| | Youth Tech Series - AI & Electronics Workshop |
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| On 13th of June, She Sharp collaborated with Peyvand Academy and the Ministry of Education to host an engaging and insightful event introducing school students to the fundamentals of electronics, artificial intelligence (AI), and technology. Dr. Mahsa MaCauley delivered an informative session on AI and emerging technology concepts, helping students understand the growing impact of technology in everyday life. Chan Meng also provided a live demonstration of various AI tools, giving students a practical insight into how AI can be used to solve real-world problems. The event featured hands-on learning activities involving rain, temperature, and water sensors, allowing students to explore basic electronics through experimentation. Participants also observed a demonstration of a working automated Internet of Things (IoT) system presented by Saba Mustafa, showcasing how connected devices can interact and automate processes. A highlight of the event was the popular Makey Makey activity, where learners built their own custom keyboards using everyday objects. Students used bananas, mandarins, aluminium foil balls, and wooden sticks as functional keyboard keys, transforming ordinary items into interactive technology tools. This creative activity encouraged curiosity, innovation, problem-solving, and hands-on learning. The event successfully inspired students to explore the exciting world of electronics, AI, and technology while fostering creativity and enthusiasm for future learning in STEM fields. |
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| Youth Tech Series - Electronics Workshop |
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| On 20th of June, She Sharp collaborated with Little Engineers, Peyvand Academy, and the Ministry of Education to host an interactive and engaging workshop on Electricity Fundamentals. The workshop was facilitated by Dr. Dulsha Kularatna-Abeywardana, who delivered an informative session through a series of live demonstrations and hands-on experiments. She began by introducing the fundamentals of electrical energy production and discussing the various energy resources available in New Zealand. Throughout the workshop, participants explored a range of practical activities, including working with resistors and LEDs, building series and parallel circuits, creating light dimmers, generating electricity, and discovering how electric motors work. These interactive experiments provided students with valuable opportunities to apply their learning in a practical setting. The school children showed great curiosity, enthusiasm, and engagement throughout the session. They actively participated in building circuits and experimenting with electrical components, making the workshop both educational and inspiring for future young innovators and engineers. |
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| | | OpenAI faces growing regulatory scrutiny A coalition of 42 U.S. state attorneys general has launched an investigation into OpenAI, focusing on data privacy, AI safety, and protections for children and vulnerable users. The probe comes as OpenAI reportedly prepares for an IPO. Read more… |
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| Microsoft doubles down on AI-first development At Build 2026, Microsoft unveiled new AI infrastructure and developer tools, including agentic applications, AI-ready databases, and faster grounding technologies, reinforcing its vision of an AI-centric software ecosystem. Read more… |
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| New Zealand warns about frontier AI cyber risks New Zealand's National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has released guidance on the impact of frontier AI, highlighting both opportunities and growing risks as AI enables increasingly sophisticated cyberattacks. Read more… |
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| Kyndryl and AWS expand partnership around Agentic AI Kyndryl and AWS announced a deeper collaboration to help enterprises deploy and manage agentic AI workloads across mission-critical systems, reflecting increasing enterprise demand for autonomous AI solutions. Read more… |
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| AI communities continue to grow across Aotearoa Tech New Zealand has announced several upcoming events, including the nationwide AI Hackathon Festival in August. The initiative aims to bring together developers, designers, students, and industry experts to build practical AI solutions. Read more… |
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| | | | P: +64 020 4188 9241 E: info@shesharp.org.nz www.shesharp.org.nz |
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