Verbal Highs & AUT School of Communication Studies present:

THE NZ PODCASTING SUMMIT 2026

An annual hui for Aotearoa’s podcasting community to meet, collaborate, learn, & grow.
SATURDAY MAY 9 2026
AUCKLAND CENTRAL
POWERED BY ROCKSHOP

SPEAKERS
SCHEDULE
SUPPORTERS
TICKETS
  • Will Fleming

    Will Fleming

    CAMPFIRE STUDIOS
    Will Fleming is one of Aotearoa’s original podcasters. From My Kiwi Life (2015+), to Please Blow My Mind (2018+), and A Beacon of Hope (2023+). He founded Campfire Studios to strengthen Pacific voices and communities through safe Talanoa.

    LINKEDIN / WEBSITE / SPOTIFY / INSTAGRAM

  • Sonia Gray

    Sonia Gray

    NO SUCH THING AS NORMAL
    Sonia Gray is an actor, presenter, and podcast producer. She is New Zealand’s longest-serving Lotto host. As an ADHDer raising a neurodivergent daughter, Sonia produces & hosts No Such Thing As Normal, a podcast exploring the lived experience of neurodiversity.

    WEBSITE / SPOTIFY / INSTAGRAM

  • Sam Irvine

    Sam Irvine

    COPYRIGHT LICENSING NZ
    Sam Irvine is the Chief Executive of Resale Royalties Aotearoa and Copyright Licensing New Zealand. His previous roles include Managing Director at creative brand agency Badger Communications, and General Manager at Freeview New Zealand.

    LINKEDIN / WEBSITE

  • A man with curly brown hair and blue eyes smiling, wearing a green and white striped shirt.

    Lewis Tennant

    VERBAL HIGHS
    Lewis Tennant is a teacher, journalist, and podcaster. He is a Senior Lecturer at AUT, where he runs a dedicated podcasting course. He hosted & produced Verbal Highs for eight years, and produced Peter Ellis, the Creche Case & Me for Newsroom.

    LINKEDIN / WEBSITE / SPOTIFY / FACEBOOK

  • Sasha Borissenko

    Sasha Borissenko

    MASTER OF CEREMONIES
    Sasha Borissenko is a multimedia journalist, editor, PR specialist, and podcast producer whose work has appeared in many global publications. She won a Science Journalism Award (Established Journalist) for her Chewing the Facts podcast.

    LINKEDIN / WEBSITE / SPOTIFY / INSTAGRAM

  • A middle-aged man with gray hair in a checkered suit and white shirt, looking serious against a dark background.

    Guyon Espiner

    RNZ
    Guyon Espiner has been a journalist for over 30 years, including 14 years in the parliamentary press gallery. He is a reporter, political editor, documentary maker, and podcast producer. Guyon’s podcast’s include The Service, Red Line, The Ninth Floor, and 30 with Guyon Espiner.

    LINKEDIN / WEBSITE / SPOTIFY / INSTAGRAM

  • Ethan Sills

    Ethan Sills

    NZ HERALD PODCASTS
    Ethan Sills is Podcast Production Manager at the New Zealand Herald. His production credits include The Front Page, Chasing Ghosts, and Accused: The Polkinghorne Trial. Ethan was named Podcast Producer of the Year at the 2024 NZ Radio & Podcast awards.

    LINKEDIN / WEBSITE / SPOTIFY

  • Katie Lowes

    Katie Lowes

    FOHBOH
    Katie Lowes is the director of Raglan-based research & campaign company FOHBOH (Front of House Back of House). Her work ranges from from creating giant murals with tamariki, to masterminding large marketing campaigns. Katie hosts Happy Mondays on Raglan Radio.

    LINKEDIN / WEBSITE / RADIO / INSTAGRAM

  • David Fisher

    David Fisher

    CHASING GHOSTS: THE PUPPETEER
    David Fisher has worked as a journalist for more than 30 years, winning multiple journalism awards and being selected as one of a small number of Wolfson Press Fellows to Wolfson College, Cambridge. He is the investigative host of Chasing Ghosts: The Puppeteer.

    LINKEDIN /WEBSITE / SPOTIFY / FACEBOOK

  • A smiling man with light brown hair and a beard, wearing a light purple button-up shirt, sitting outdoors against a stone wall.

    Collin Bjork

    POD UNI
    Collin Bjork is a Senior Lecturer in English and Media Studies at Massey University. He teaches podcasting and produces Pod Uni, a podcast about podcasting. Collin is working on a book about the relationship between true crime podcasting and public opinion.

    WEBSITE / SPOTIFY

  • Hannah Hunt

    Hannah Hunt

    ROAR COLLECTIVE
    Hannah Hunt co-founded one of New Zealand’s first independent podcast production agencies. Born in 2018, ROAR focuses on branded content. Hannah produces the award-winning podcast What Matters Most, hosted by Antonia Prebble and Jacqui Maguire. 

    LINKEDIN / WEBSITE / SPOTIFY / INSTAGRAM

  • A man with short, curly brown hair and a beard, wearing a black button-up shirt, appears to be speaking or making a plea, with a concerned or serious expression, and is holding his right hand near his face against a plain white background.

    Alan McElroy

    THE WORLD IS !@#$%*!
    Alan McElroy is an award-winning Irish comedian, actor, content creator, and MC. He is a regular guest on RNZ’s The Panel. Alan co-hosts The World Is !@#$%*! , a podcast dissecting the crazy, funny and odd things that happen around the world.

    FACEBOOK / INSTAGRAM / WEBSITE / LINKTR.EE

  • Craig Parker

    Craig Parker

    RØDE
    Craig Parker is Asia Pacific sales manager for RØDE, the Australian audio technology company amplifying the voice and vision of the world’s creators.

    WEBSITE / INSTAGRAM / FACEBOOK

SPEAKERS
SCHEDULE
SUPPORTERS
TICKETS

SCHEDULE

9am: Event Opens (30m)

Event and registration desk open. Sign in and uplift your summit pack at the registration desk. Help yourself to tea and coffee. Meet your fellow delegates.

9.30am: Welcome #1 - AUT (10m)

A few words from XXXX

9.40am: Welcome #2 – NZ Podcasting Summit (10m)

A few words from Summit HQ, before introducing your event host XXXX

9:50 am: Session #1 (55m)
‘XXXX’
Richard Palmer (VP Market Development & Strategy, Triton Digital, APAC)

Sonia Gray reflects on creating, producing, storyboarding, editing, and hosting her award-winning podcast No Such Thing As Normal, a show focused on increasing awareness & understanding of (and support for) Aotearoa’s neurodivergent community.

10:45 am: Morning Tea (15m)

11:00 am: Session #2 (45m)
’Mic Breaker’

Hosted by The World Is !@#$%*! podcast host and stand-up comedian Alan McElroy. Mic Breaker. It's like musical chairs without the music. Pass the parcel without the parcel. Speed dating without the dating. Now is the time to meet as many of your fellow delegates as possible. Trust and follow the process and the Alan.

11:45 am: Session #3 (60m)
Free FM presents ‘Mic Drop Marathon’

Now Alan has broken the ice, we’ll continue to get to know each other before having some lunch. It’s the return of performing and recording 25 hosts and guests on a single podcast episode. You can join in or watch from the sidelines, up to you.

Thanks to Free FM 89.0; independent community media based in the Waikato, and part of the Community Access Media Alliance.

12.45 pm: Lunch (60m)

1:45 pm: Session #4 (55m)
’Creative Machinas: Podcasting & Artificial Intelligence’

A panel session with Justin Matthews & Nigel Horrocks (Creative Machinas). Moderated by Lewis Tennant (Oopsie NZ).

2:40 pm: Session #5 (55m)
’Podcasting for Social Change’

A panel session with Paul Barlow (Paul… The Other One) & Matthew Tukaki (Waaeta News). Moderated by Cate Prestidge (Wintec).

3:35 pm: Break (20m)

3:55 pm: Session #6 (55m)
‘Video Killed the Podcast Star (!) (?)’

A panel session with Jaimee Poipoi (The Art of Entertaining), Roo Reihana-Wilson (Kaputī with the Cousins), and Ryan Lamont (Acast).

Thanks to RØDE; great sound is the foundation of every podcast, and RØDE has a range of solutions to fit your needs and budget.

4:50 pm: Event Ends

SPEAKERS
SCHEDULE
SUPPORTERS
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