November AI Meetup - AI in Public Sector & Private Business

Explore how AI is being put to work across local government & business in November’s Second Monday Meetup. Councillor Joe Davies will be sharing how to bring AI into the council chamber through personal experimentation and public discussion, while Blake Harkness will be showing how to run two businesses with an AI-powered back office. Drinks, demos, and practical takeaways included.

Meet up with your local AI community on the Second Monday of November at EPIC Innovation:

5:30–6:00 pm — Drinks & Networking
6:00–6:45 pm — Cr Joe Davies - AI in the Public Sector
6:45–7:30 pm — Blake Harkness - How I Run My Business On AI
7:30–8:00 pm — Drinks & Open Q&A

AI in the Council Chamber: Learning in Public — Councillor Joe Davies
Environment Canterbury Councillor Joe Davies chairs the council’s AI Working Group, which was re-established in May 2026. The group provides a forum for councillors to explore AI, share knowledge, and report insights back into council discussions.

Joe’s story begins with a Notice of Motion in February 2025. Already using AI himself, he wanted the council table to explore what these tools could do. He’ll describe the working group that emerged: no budget, no delegated authority, but a chamber, a livestream, and the ability to make recommendations in public.

This talk follows two connected journeys: learning AI by using it, and learning how a public institution comes to terms with it. Joe will share what worked, what didn’t, what his own AI workflow looks like, and the questions local government reform raises for where this work goes next.

Key Points:

• A councillor’s AI workflow: See how Joe uses AI in his own work and what he has learned through experimentation.
• From personal use to public discussion: Hear how his experience with AI led to a proposal for a council working group.
• Working within constraints: Explore the role of a group that can discuss and recommend, but has no budget or delegated authority.
• What comes next: Consider the questions AI raises for local government as its responsibilities and structures evolve.

Who This Is For:

• Public-sector professionals, elected members, and people working with government.
• Leaders exploring how to introduce AI within established organisational processes.
• Anyone curious about how AI is being discussed and used in Canterbury’s public institutions.

How I Run My Businesses on AI — Blake Harkness
Blake Harkness is an AI engineer and the founder of Harkness AI and Young Kiwis in AI, with experience helping 50+ New Zealand businesses adopt AI. With most of his own back office handed to AI, he has supported that work and grown a 350-member community without hiring a back-office team.

In this talk, he speedruns it department by department: marketing, accounting, web development, sales, and content. Every build gets the same four slides: the problem, what he built, the results, and what’s next. Then straight to the next one.
You’ll leave with a list of builds you can start on Tuesday.

Key Points:

• Five departments, real builds: See how Blake uses AI across marketing, accounting, web development, sales, and content.
• From problem to results: Get the story behind each build, including what it does and what he plans to improve.
• An AI-powered back office: Learn how he supports two ventures without hiring a dedicated admin team.
• Ideas to take home: Identify builds you could adapt to your own business or workflow.

Who This Is For:

• Business owners and founders looking to reduce their administrative workload.
• Developers and AI builders who want concrete examples of working systems.
• Marketing, sales, and operations professionals looking for practical ideas to adapt.

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When: Monday, 9 November, 5:30–8:00 pm
Where: EPIC Innovation, Christchurch
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Sponsored by the AI Coaching Academy. Come have some 🍻 beer and wine🍷 and raise a glass with your local AI Community!
https://ai-coaching.academy/