An accelerator built by operators, for Aotearoa.
TechDojo exists because the path from a Kiwi notebook idea to an internationally-funded company is still too long, too lonely, and too expensive. We built the programme we wish had existed when we were starting out.
New Zealand has produced extraordinary founders — but in spite of the system, not because of it. The accelerators that mattered were overseas. The capital networks were impenetrable. The mentorship was an exchange of business cards at a Wellington reception.
TechDojo is the answer to a simple question: what would a programme look like that was as serious as a Y Combinator, as supportive as a Seedcamp, and as Kiwi as a Saturday-morning rugby pitch?
It would be free. It would be cohort-based. It would be taught by operators who’ve done it themselves, three of whom you’d be paired with one-on-one. It would be deliberately non-Auckland-only, because the next great NZ company is as likely to come out of Tauranga or Whakatāne as it is Britomart.
It would publish its outcomes — every cohort, every founder, every dollar raised — to MBIE and to the founders themselves, because credibility is built one verifiable claim at a time.
That’s TechDojo.
Three years, six cohorts.
TechDojo started as a side project at Digital Pathways in early 2023. It became MBIE-supported in 2025 with the goal of formalising what was already working — and reaching every region of Aotearoa.
TechDojo’s first cohort.
Twelve founders. Auckland-only. A six-week pilot run by a team of three. Three of those founders went on to raise pre-seed within twelve months.
The 14-week format takes shape.
Three cohorts run across the year. The Wellington and Christchurch residencies are added. First eight mentors join the formal network.
Kiwi PMF Stories launches.
The interview series — initially as a podcast, now also as the Playbook download — debuts with Halter’s Craig Piggott as Issue 01.
MBIE supports the programme.
Under the Incubators & Accelerators line. Cohorts grow to 30+ founders. Travel grants for regional and underrepresented founders begin.
Pre-programme bootcamps launch.
Startup Ideation and Vibe Coding, both free, both online, both 6× per year. Used by 1,200+ aspirants in their first year.
Twenty events. The library opens.
The free templates, AI tools, funding-benchmarks dataset, and Kiwi PMF Playbook (v3) are made public. FY26 cohort 02 opens 04 October.
Four operating principles.
Our principles drive every cohort decision — who we accept, what we teach, who we partner with, and how we publish our outcomes.
Free at the point of entry.
The accelerator is delivered free of charge and equity-free. Nothing about being a NZ founder should require you to be wealthy first.
Operators, not theorists.
Every mentor has built a company. Every workshop is taught by someone who’s shipped the lesson, not just read it.
Whānau across the motu.
Hybrid by design. Travel grants for regional and underrepresented founders. The Demo Day room reflects all of Aotearoa.
Outcomes in the open.
Every metric we track — completion, capital raised, jobs created, founder demographics — is published to MBIE and to the founders themselves.
Five operators and a founding panel.
TechDojo is run lean — five full-time staff and a founding panel of advisors, plus the 80+ mentors. No business-development team, no media department.
Laurent Simon
Co-founder of Digital Pathways. 20+ years in capability building & AI governance across APAC. Author of The AI Dojo Experiment.
David Perry
Co-founder of Perry-Martel International. 30+ years in talent & coaching. Author of Guerrilla Marketing for Job Hunters.
Aroha Williams
Ex-CPO at Xero. Joined TechDojo full-time in 2025 to design the 14-week curriculum and lead the cohort residencies.
Hera Tipene
TechDojo alum (Cohort 03 of 2025) and CEO of Tāmaki Health AI. Runs admissions, founder match, and the alumni network.
How TechDojo is funded — and what it costs.
Because TechDojo is delivered free and equity-free, public funding is what keeps the lights on. We’re open about the numbers.
Incubators & Accelerators
To run the 14-week, cohort-based accelerator — two intakes per year, 20–50 founders each — plus the pre-programme Startup Ideation and Vibe Coding bootcamps.
Goal: idea → investor-ready
Events & Resources
To deliver ~20 events per year, the free online resource library (templates, AI tools, funding benchmarks), and the Kiwi PMF Stories interview series.
Goal: open-access ecosystem
Total request — $300k NZD per year — delivered through MBIE’s Incubators & Accelerators and Events & Resources lines.