Impactful Innovation 26
12 October 2026
- Starting Out
- Scaling Up
- Adopt
- Ignite
Bridgewest Impactful Innovation 2026 opens Auckland Startup Week. This one-day conference cuts through the hype to show how deep tech actually gets built and sold globally. Across three themed sessions covering Human, Planet and Frontier, you'll hear from investors, operators and founders across the Bridgewest network, plus a curated Startup Spotlight. Execution over noise.
Bridgewest Impactful Innovation 2026 returns for its fourth year, opening Auckland Startup Week as New Zealand's flagship deep tech conference.
This year spans three themes: Human Health, Planetary Health and Frontier Technology. It's a programme built for people who challenge the default playbook and back it with execution, not hype.
Across the day you'll hear from investors, operators and founders across the Bridgewest network: people who've built billion-dollar companies, navigated real exits, and are backing the next generation of deep tech. Candid keynotes and fireside chats sit alongside a curated Startup Spotlight, where New Zealand's most promising ventures pitch to investors and strategics.
Impactful Innovation is hosted by Bridgewest Ventures New Zealand, a deep tech incubator commercialising world-class New Zealand research and backing science-led ventures across life sciences, medtech, climate and advanced materials.
We're part of the global Bridgewest Group: 25 years building and exiting companies, currently holding 40+ investments spanning life sciences, semiconductors, software, AI and finance, across seven countries.
That's the network, capital and hands-on experience we bring to every founder in the room.
This is where New Zealand's boldest deep tech meets the conviction and capital to take it global. Join us!
General Admission (Early Bird) - $350.00
General Admission - $435.00
Venue
Pipiri Lane
124 Halsey St, Wynyard Quarter, Auckland 1010
Pipiri Lane isn’t just a place to work or host — it’s a statement. Located in Wynyard Quarter, Auckland’s buzzing innovation hub, it’s New Zealand's first cross-laminated timber work and event space. With a 6 Star Green Star rating, Pipiri Lane is one of Auckland’s most sustainable buildings, representing a rare opportunity to align businesses with innovation, environmental responsibility and forward-thinking design.
Oliver Hardick
Investment Director at M Ventures
Ollie is an engineer by training, entrepreneur by heart, and investor by trade, with deep expertise in bioprocessing and life science tools. He completed his Engineering Doctorate at UCL before founding Puridify, a biotech tools company based on his academic research. As CEO, he led Puridify through venture funding to a successful acquisition by GE Healthcare in 2017. He has since worked across both corporate and investment environments, including GE Healthcare, Danaher Corporation, and M Ventures, supporting innovation, business strategy, M&A, and early-stage company building. Having led an SME and worked within large global corporates, Ollie brings practical insight into the needs of spin-outs and start-ups from inception through to growth and exit. Based in London, Ollie is an Honorary Lecturer at UCL, has served two elected terms on the board of the BioIndustry Association, and is active on 10 company boards globally, and invests in life sciences through his role as EIR and Investment Director at M Ventures, and more broadly as an angel investor.