Agentic Engineering & Infra | Auckland AI Builders (in person event)
Details
## RSVP
RSVP on Luma: https://luma.com/vt8er50u
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Hi everyone!
It's been a long time since I organized an in-person meetup, so we're back with fantastic talks from the community!
Beyond the hype and vendor pitches, we want to build a space for knowledge sharing, open discussion, and collaboration about our AI journey. Bring your questions—we'll bring ours (and we have plenty!).
Agents are everywhere in the headlines—but what's actually under the hood, and how do you build and ship them safely?
Join us for an evening of talks exploring agentic AI, from the foundations and infrastructure layers through to security, governance, and real-world engineering practices.
Whether you're a software developer, platform engineer, cloud native practitioner, architect, or simply curious about where AI engineering is heading, you'll find something for you. Expect practical talks, plenty of networking, and a welcoming community of builders.
## 📅 Event Details
When: Tuesday, August 11, 5:00 PM – 7:30 PM
Where: Microsoft Offices, Auckland
Doors open: 5:00 PM
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# Lineup
## An Introduction to the new Agentic AI Foundation (Linux Foundation)
Speakers: Darshit Pandya & Chris Mazur
Abstract:
The Agentic AI Foundation (AAIF) is a neutral, open home—hosted by the Linux Foundation—for the projects defining how AI agents work, including MCP, Goose, AGENTS.md, and AgentGateway. This talk gives a quick tour of why the foundation exists, who's behind it, and how transparent, collaborative standards are shaping the future of agentic AI.
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## From Dirt to Agents
Speaker: Juan Pablo (JP) Vasquez
Abstract:
AI isn't magic, and it isn't just autocomplete—it's five physical layers stacked from the ground up. In 25 minutes, we climb all five, so you can read any AI headline and know exactly which layer it's about.
Bio:
JP Vasquez is the founder of AI Foundry, a New Zealand sovereign AI inference provider running on owned hardware in Auckland, and the authorized ANZ partner for Positron AI. A 17x certified IT professional (including 2x NVIDIA), he brings six years of enterprise platform and advisory experience from Deloitte and KPMG.
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## AI Intelligence on Mobile
Speaker: Srini Munagala
Abstract:
TBC
Bio:
Srinivas Rao Munagala is co-founder and CEO of UIRev Limited, an Auckland-based software company specializing in enterprise mobile, Salesforce, and on-device AI solutions. For over 15 years, UIRev has built field-first software for some of New Zealand's largest organizations—including Fonterra and Fulton Hogan—solving problems that happen in paddocks, on construction sites, and across distributed crews, not in offices.
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## Agent Governance Toolkit (AGT)
Speaker: Ricky Gummadi
Abstract:
Everyone can build—governance is the new bottleneck. How are you securing your agents and agent orchestrations against the OWASP Agentic Top 10, and how does AGT help? A fast 15-minute look at closing the governance gap.
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## Your LLM Is Live. Who's Watching the Front Door?
### A Guide to AI Security
Speaker: Andeed Ma
Abstract:
Prompt injection, data leaks, and adversarial attacks—your live LLM is exposed. This session distills international standards from dry compliance into code-review checklists and deployment gates that catch LLM threats before they hit production.
Bio:
Andeed Ma is CTO of BAIC and a Mirror Committee Member for ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 42 on Artificial Intelligence with Standards New Zealand. With over two decades of leadership across AI, fintech, and risk management at firms including ServiceNow, ByteDance, and CyberArk, he also serves as President of the Risk and Insurance Management Association of Singapore (RIMAS) and a Partner at the AI International Institute (AIII) think tank. He lectures at the Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS) and co-authored AI for Humanity (Wiley).
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# 🙌 Sponsors
Special thanks to our sponsors:
### UiRev
https://www.uirev.com/
Pizzas & drinks
UiRev provides product development services and consulting, specializing in custom mobile solutions and AI agentic systems for enterprise clients. With 25+ years of experience, the team brings expertise in Salesforce integration, user experience design, and AI-driven innovation, co-designing digital products with organizations across Australia and New Zealand.
### Microsoft New Zealand
Venue
Thanks to Daniel Scott-Raynsford and the Microsoft New Zealand team for hosting us.
### Agentic Engineering Day NZ (AEDNZ)
https://www.agenticengineering.day/
📢 CFP OPEN!
October 21–22, Auckland
### Plexure
https://plexure.com/
AEDNZ Sponsor
Plexure is a global software company that helps major consumer brands create personalized digital experiences that drive customer engagement, loyalty, and revenue.
### AutoHand AI
https://autohand.ai/
AEDNZ Sponsor
AutoHand AI gives teams governed coding agents that plan, edit, test, and improve software.
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# RSVP
Spaces are limited—RSVP to secure your spot:
https://luma.com/vt8er50u
Looking forward to seeing you there!