AI developments spark regulatory debate in New Zealand and market competition for Google

In New Zealand, the government is pursuing a ‘light-touch approach’ to artificial intelligence, favoring voluntary guidelines and existing laws over specific new regulations. While the 2025 AI strategy aims to encourage adoption to create a more efficient public service, critics question whether these safeguards are sufficient to manage risks or protect creative industries and the environment.

In the technology sector, analysts Gene Munster and Doug Clinton of Deepwater Asset Management suggest that Meta’s Muse personal AI agent poses a greater long-term threat to Alphabet’s Google search business than OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Unlike chatbots that primarily handle information retrieval, Muse is designed to perform multi-step tasks such as scheduling appointments and completing purchases. This shift toward action-oriented AI could bypass the traditional search routing that underpins Google’s revenue model. In response, Google has integrated its Spark agent into the Gemini experience via a new ‘Task’ mode.