Aerospace New Zealand Meet-Up #41 - Aerospace in Acceleration: 2026 and Beyond
Description
Aerospace New Zealand is excited to host our first Auckland event of 2026, following the merger with Aerospace Auckland - bringing together innovators, investors, founders, and partners from across Aotearoa’s aerospace community.
This event will explore the trends shaping aerospace in 2026 and what they mean for New Zealand’s growing sector. We’ll hear from a panel of industry voices, followed by short pitches from our fantastic associates and local startups working on what’s next.
Whether you’re building, investing, researching, or supporting aerospace in Aotearoa, this is a chance to:
Hear where the sector is heading
Share what you’re working on
Meet others shaping the future of aerospace
This event marks the start of a new chapter for our community: one connected, national aerospace network.
Please note the below event information:
5.00pm - Networking
5.30pm - Event Begins
Panellists to be announced shortly!
Online Option: For people who can't make it to the event, we will be offering a live webinar, so please register for that and select the Online Ticket option under ticket type.
See you there!
Aerospace New Zealand
A special thank you to our venue sponsor, Outset Ventures for the incredible venue and to the Aerospace New Zealand Auckland sub-committee for their support.
Lineup

Mat Rowe
Founding Partner at Outset Ventures

Emeline Paat-Dahlstrom
Co-Founder & CEO, SpaceBase

Malcolm Snowdon
CEO, Snowdon Consulting

Ben Till
Director Space and Deep Tech Investments
Agenda
- 5:30 pm - 5:45 pm
Welcome & Aerospace New Zealand Committee Update
- 5:45 pm - 5:50 pm
Associate Pitch: Janine Gray, GDF Group
- 5:50 am - 6:00 pm
StartUp Pitch: Spectral Defense
- 6:00 pm - 6:30 pm
Panel Discussion - Aerospace in Acceleration: 2026 and Beyond
- 6:30 pm - 6:35 pm
Partner Update: Karen Haigh, ChristchurchNZ
- 6:35 pm - 6:45 pm
Partner Update: New Zealand Space Agency
- 6:45 pm - 6:55 pm
Aerospace New Zealand Update: Brydee Gibbins, Operations Lead
- 7:00 pm - 7:30 pm
Wrap Up, Networking
Tickets for good, not greed Humanitix dedicates 100% of profits from booking fees to charity



