Velocity $100k Challenge Grand Final Prizegiving 2026

The 2026 Velocity Student Leadership Committee and the Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE) present the Velocity $100k Challenge Grand Final prizegiving at Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland. This annual celebration recognises the creativity and ambition of student and staff innovators. On the night, the five winning teams will be announced, sharing a $100,000 prize pool and taking their ventures to the next level. Guest speaker We’re also delighted to share that Matty Blomfield, founder and CEO of Hectre, will be joining us as our guest speaker for the evening. Matty Blomfield (Ngāti Hine, Ngāti Kahungunu) is the founder and CEO of Hectre, the New Zealand agritech company behind Arc, an AI platform that uses computer vision to grade and understand fruit quality at speed. Arc is now used by fruit packhouses across the US, Latin America, Europe and beyond, turning one of the oldest industries on earth into a data problem worth solving. Under Matty's leadership Hectre has grown from a small Kiwi team into a global business and was named both Agritech Company of the Year and Te Ao Māori Company of the Year at the NZ Hi-Tech Awards. Born in Invercargill, fourth time founder, improvisor and dad, Matty has a relentless bias for action, builds at the intersection of technology, commercial ambition, and te ao Māori. Join University leaders, industry partners, and members of Aotearoa’s start-up community for an evening of inspiration and celebration. About the Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship The Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship provides a world of opportunity to participants so that they can stand-out and create value through innovative careers and start-up creation. CIE is New Zealand’s leading University entrepreneurship centre, winning 16 international awards since 2020.