Two investors — one government-backed, one fresh off a flight from San Francisco — make the case that New Zealand is post-product-market-fit as a startup ecosystem, and now just needs the capital, culture, and ambition to go 10X. Recorded live at the NZVC Portfolio Day as part of Auckland Startup Week, this panel brings together James Pinner, CEO of NZGCP, and Warren Scheffler, a partner from San Francisco-based Pair VC, who recently relocated to Auckland — alongside TechMates hosts Mark Pavlyukovskyy and Hendrik Remigereau. The conversation covers the state of New Zealand’s startup ecosystem, what it would take to get from $1B to $10B in annual venture investment, and why the country already has better fundamentals than most people realise. James walks through NZGCP’s “Five Fives” ambition — 5,000 startups, $5B in capital, 50,000 jobs, $50B in economic value — and makes the case for why government still needs to be the biggest risk-taker at the earliest stages. Warren brings a fresh outsider’s perspective: New Zealand’s enterprise value per VC dollar is 11X, Kiwi founders consistently undersell themselves to US investors, and the ecosystem’s biggest bottleneck isn’t talent — it’s ambition and connectivity. 🚀 The Five Fives: NZGCP’s plan for 5,000 startups, $5B in capital and $50B in economic value for New Zealand over the next five years. 🌍 NZ vs. Israel: Why Israel is the most relevant comparison — and the one key difference that still separates the two ecosystems. 🌱 The Tall Poppy Problem: Why New Zealand’s cultural fear of failure is one of the biggest real barriers to startup growth — and how to change it. 💰 KiwiSaver & Institutional Capital: Why the money is sitting there, why it’s not flowing into VC yet, and what it will take to unlock it. 🔗 The Four C’s: Capital, Capability, Culture and Connectivity — how New Zealand scores on each, and where the biggest gaps are. 🏭 Deep Tech as NZ’s Edge: Why the physical world — atoms, not just bits — is New Zealand’s natural advantage, and how to lean into it. 🎧 Listen On: YouTube: https://lnkd.in/gQnb_WbB Spotify: https://spoti.fi/4is21QI Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/42KZ2x1 🔗 Learn more about NZVC: https://www.nzvc.co.nz Mark Pavlyukovskyy — https://www.linkedin.com/in/pavlyukovskyy/ Hendrik Remigereau — https://www.linkedin.com/in/hendrik-remigereau-09a03067/Timestamps: 00:39 — Introductions: James Pinner & Warren Scheffler 01:00 — The Five Fives: NZGCP’s bold plan for NZ startups 02:58 — Warren’s story: why he moved from San Francisco to Auckland 04:00 — NZ vs. Israel: the comparison that matters most 05:50 — Kiwis undersell themselves to US investors 07:17 — Is NZ growing fast enough? A contrarian take 09:30 — The Four C’s: Capital, Capability, Culture, Connectivity 10:21 — Rocket Lab’s halo effect and the startup flywheel 12:18 — “We’re post-product-market-fit as an ecosystem” 14:33 — The tall poppy syndrome: audience poll 15:30 — “Failure is the fertilizer of success” 17:00 — Great at introductions, bad at asking for help 19:48 — Rocket Lab: $70B market cap, born in NZ 20:30 — What sectors should NZ focus on? 22:40 — What happens when NZ startups need to scale offshore? 25:36 — Power by Proxy: Apple’s R&D base in Auckland 26:44 — Should government fund growth capital or just seed? 29:30 — The Active Investor Plus visa: where is the money going? 31:00 — Political risk: the K-shaped economy and startup narrative 33:00 — Can NZ handle inequality differently if the ecosystem succeeds? 35:15 — One wish for the incoming government #TechMates, #NZVC, #AucklandStartupWeek, #NewZealand, #NZTech, #StartupEcosystem, #VentureCapital, #NZGCP, #JamesPinner, #WarrenScheffler, #RocketLab, #Halter, #Partly, #NZStartups, #DeepTech, #KiwiSaver, #Entrepreneurship, #TallPoppySyndrome, #StartupHub, #Innovation, #GrowthCapital, #NZVenture, #Founders, #TechInvestment, #StartupCulture
