AI regulation: still a to-do item on New Zealand’s political agenda

The body of AI regulations and country strategies has been steadily growing in the past few years. The EU recently adopted the world’s first comprehensive AI regulation, the AI Act. The US has published several high-level guidance documents, such as the 2023 Executive Order on AI, and has begun to introduce AI-specific laws and amendments to existing laws at the state and substate levels. China has also adopted several laws in the AI space. Many other countries have at least developed and published AI strategies. New Zealand (NZ) is a latecomer to AI regulation. As of yet, there is no overarching AI strategy, AI-specific legislation, much less a comprehensive AI regulatory framework in place. This paper surveys key domestic actors and regulatory initiatives that will form the basis of the country’s future AI regulatory landscape.