Finding Inspiration in New Zealand at the KiwiNet Awards

Andrew J. Maas
Chair, AUTM Board of Directors
Associate VP for Research, Innovation and Ecosystem Development
Louisiana State University






James Hutchinson
CEO, KiwiNet








I was recently invited by James Hutchinson, KiwiNet CEO, to participate in the KiwiNet Awards in New Zealand. As the field of technology transfer faces a  global revolution, I believe it is important to engage in meaningful dialogue globally to support a growing and developing profession.

KiwiNet serves as a national network dedicated to accelerating innovation through research commercialization and fostering collaboration between universities, research institutes, industry partners and investors. Their mission is to strengthen the commercialization ecosystem, enabling New Zealand to reap the benefits of research-driven innovation.

As the keynote speaker at the at the annual KiwiNet Research Commercialisation Awards, I was given an opportunity to support the global importance of technology transfer. I shared insights on technology commercialization and ecosystem development, striving to energize the audience and inspire the participants. And I engaged in meaningful dialogue about our shared challenges and opportunities.

I started my keynote address by sharing a perspective in the Māori language: “Ehara taku toa he toa takitahi, engari he toa takitini”, which means “My success is not achieved alone, but rather it is achieved collectively.”

Hutchison noted that my keynote address left a lasting impression on the KiwiNet Awards audience, and that the message championed the importance of the commercialization and innovation ecosystem, underscoring that success is achieved when all players work collectively toward the good of the whole. By supporting each other, the success of one can uplift all, transforming individual wins into collective achievements.

Beyond the awards, James and I visited with stakeholders in New Zealand’s energy ecosystem, where I was able to share insights from my experience leading the National Science Foundation (NSF) Engine: Louisiana Energy Transition Engine or FUEL (Future Use of Energy in Louisiana) consortium—a public-private partnership aimed at transforming the Louisiana energy sector. Our journey with NSF FUEL, from design to implementation, offered a valuable blueprint for fostering collaborative, goal-oriented innovation that could be replicated in countries and by governments all over.

As New Zealand advances its own science system reforms and identifies key priority areas, the experiences with the NSF FUEL project provided timely inspiration for how a unified approach to energy innovation could look in their context. These contributions served as a strong reminder to the KiwiNet partners of the power of tech transfer and commercialization to address pressing, real-world challenges and inspire collective efforts toward impactful outcomes.

In the end, we built stronger relationships between AUTM and KiwiNet and had some fun while doing it.