Research & Development
Applied research in AI, automation, and systems engineering
Our R&D programme develops the tools and techniques that underpin our client work. We invest in applied research across machine learning, systems automation, and knowledge engineering — building production-grade capability, not proofs of concept.
Active Projects
Reinforcement learning agents operating under finite resource constraints. Agents develop allocation strategies in scarcity environments, with direct applications in efficient markets modelling, economic simulation, and resource optimisation under uncertainty.
Code-first AI integration where deterministic software remains sovereign. Language models serve bounded inference functions — exposing latent structure, resolving ambiguity, bootstrapping representations — without controlling the architecture. Every inference step is auditable and every relationship attributed.
Converting unstructured text into executable logical representations for machine reasoning. Targets legal instruments, technical standards, and regulatory frameworks — enabling automated compliance checking and knowledge extraction where human interpretation is currently the bottleneck.
Deep learning models trained entirely in simulation, validated in software, then deployed to physical hardware. Bridging the sim-to-real transfer gap for production robotics — design, iterate, and validate before committing to costly hardware cycles.
Investigating computational models of reflective reasoning and metacognition. How can systems develop awareness of their own inference processes — moving beyond pattern matching toward deliberative thought? Foundational research with implications across all our applied AI work.
Automated aggregation and analysis of industry news across hundreds of sources. Combines NLP-driven topic clustering with relevance scoring to surface actionable intelligence from noise. Feeds downstream analysis and report generation systems.
Template-driven document production from structured data inputs. Generates analysis reports, strategic briefs, and technical documentation with consistent formatting, automated visualisations, and structured narratives — reducing manual authoring from hours to minutes.
Programmatic video generation from structured inputs — scripting, scene composition, and rendering without manual editing. Targeting technical explainers, data visualisation narratives, and scalable content production where traditional video workflows are cost-prohibitive.
Voice cloning and audio augmentation for synthetic speech production. High-fidelity speaker reproduction with controllable prosody, enabling personalised audio content, multi-speaker diarization, and transcript analysis from unstructured audio sources.
Workflow orchestration patterns for end-to-end business processes — quote-to-cash, order-to-cash, and similar operational flows. Designed to eliminate manual handoffs, enforce process integrity, and reduce the gap between business logic and system behaviour.
Funding & Collaboration
We are actively seeking grant funding and research sponsorships to accelerate this work. If you represent a funding body, research institution, or organisation interested in applied AI and systems research in New Zealand, we'd welcome a conversation.