Agenda

Welcome back to Day 2 of Co:Lab 2026. We hope you enjoyed reflecting on yesterday's discussions. Today brings more opportunities to learn, collaborate and share ideas as we continue our programme together.

This presentation will draw on the Women’s Health & Neuroscience (WHN) Programme, that explores how blood-based biomarkers, clinical assessment, digital health measures, and women’s lived experiences can be combined to create a more complete picture of brain health. For too long, women have been under-represented in research, leaving important gaps in our understanding of how brain health changes across the lifespan. WHN is helping build a new roadmap for earlier detection, more accurate monitoring, and more personalised care. Join this session to discover how the future of brain health assessment is moving beyond symptoms and scans toward a smarter, more proactive approach that has potential to transform outcomes for women and wider populations alike.

Cancer outcomes in Aotearoa New Zealand have persistently lagged behind those of comparable countries, compounded by inequalities and the fragmentation of the former DHB system. The creation of Health New Zealand represents the most significant structural change in a generation, bringing new challenges but also an opportunity to overcome legacy barriers and build a more connected system. At the same time, cancer care is becoming increasingly technology-driven, with advances in pathology, molecular diagnostics and genomics enabling more personalised care, but also bringing higher costs, greater complexity and growing demand. How do we navigate this changing environment and meet the future head-on to deliver fairer, world-class cancer care for all New Zealanders?

When I started practicing medicine in 1990 I was fascinated by technologies for analysing genes and genomes in patients’ tissues. However, at that time these technologies had relatively little to offer the majority of patients. Fast forward to today - what we can achieve using these technologies in both medical care and medical research is astounding. In Aotearoa New Zealand we are a fast follower in this area. In this talk I will discuss my own group’s work in genomic precision medicine, before looking at our national strengths and national challenges as we begin to build genomics into health care. 

Brought to you by Roche Diagnostics

Discover the future of health and laboratory science as emerging innovators from across New Zealand take to the stage to present bold ideas and pioneering projects.  Presenters will pitch innovative solutions to real world challenges. Join us to celebrate collaboration and the next generation of scientific innovation.

Artificial intelligence is rapidly changing how knowledge is created, analysed, and applied across science, healthcare, and research-intensive industries. While many discussions focus on individual tools or use cases, the bigger opportunity lies in understanding how AI may reshape the future of laboratory research, scientific workflows, innovation, and decision-making. This session explores emerging trends in AI, advances in digital science, and the implications for laboratory organisations. Drawing on developments from healthcare, research, government, and industry, we will examine how AI is transforming the way knowledge work is performed, how scientific discovery may accelerate, and the opportunities and challenges laboratory leaders should be preparing for today.

As AI accelerates the pace of change across healthcare and pathology, technical expertise alone will not be enough. The ability to think clearly amidst complexity, adapt effectively to uncertainty, maintain wellbeing under pressure, and build trusted relationships will become increasingly important.

Drawing on emerging research and practical experience, this session explores the human capacities that enable individuals and organisations to thrive in rapidly changing environments. Participants will be challenged to consider a critical question: As AI increases capability, what uniquely human capacities become more important, not less?

Tend launched in October 2020 and is now New Zealand's third largest primary care network. Sequencing now runs off a phone, MRI's can be 3D-printed, and self-funded testing is surfacing significant findings without a referral. More results, from more places, increasingly initiated by patients themselves. 

Josh Robb, co-founder and Chief Operating Officer, will show how Tend has built for that world: a digital front door with automated triage, centralised multidisciplinary teams, and AI embedded in the clinical record across more than half a million consultations.

What if the biggest opportunity in pathology isn’t inside the lab at all, but in the space between it and the rest of the healthcare system? Al Duncan, Chief Growth Officer at Webtools, brings a perspective shaped by years connecting up general practice, pharmacy and community care, and turns it toward pathology, a sector he believes is uniquely placed to become the connective tissue holding the patient journey together. This session is an invitation for lab leaders to think beyond the lab walls, and consider what becomes possible when diagnostics take a more active role in that journey.

Please join us downstairs for post event drinks in the Cable room