What you might have missed while we were away and what's coming next
We're back after the break!
Welcome to a new week (and era!) of Caffeine!
It’s been a while, huh?
Hope everyone had a restful break and returned to work ready to build something new or push an existing project to the next level.
A huge thanks to everyone who filled out our reader survey before the break. We will be parsing the feedback and rolling out some changes based on your input in the weeks ahead.
One change you’ll notice immediately is a bit more of my voice in the newsletter moving forward as I’ll be looking after the editorial side of things from here on out. I'll try to keep the existential AI dread stories to a minimum, I promise.
We also have a brand new team member to introduce later this week who we couldn’t be more happy to have aboard and I can’t wait for you to meet.
We’ll start the week off with a little recap of some of our favorite stories from before the break (as well as one weird holiday read I would recommend) then kicking into our usual Daily Shots and exclusive Caffeine content for Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday + a little bonus edition on Friday.
As always, a huge thank you to everyone in the Caffeine community for your continued feedback, support and attention each morning.
To put it mildly, the world is a little weird and unsettling right now. But writing for a community full of people trying to solve its problems while building amazing new things is a pleasure and privilege.
Have a great week,
Finn and the Caffeine team
Auckland Startup Week is coming 20 October to Friday 24 October 2025: Extremely excited to see an event like this come to Caffeine’s home town! Auckland will host an inaugural Startup Week from 20 October to Friday, 24 October 2025. On behalf of Council, Tātaki Auckland Unlimited will present the event in partnership with leading investment firms, entrepreneurs, research institutes, universities and corporates.
The five-day programme will showcase innovation under the banner 'Kiwi startups building a global revolution' and connect international investors with New Zealand's most promising ventures. Events like this are essential to growing our community and fostering the kinds of connections which lead to the next generation of super star startups. Can’t wait to attend! Full programme launching in June 2025. Check out a teaser promo here.
Event: Growth Jam Kicks off in Wellington May 22: Wellington Caffeinators, it's time to JAM. There’s an impressively stacked lineup of tech leaders ready to share their best growth stories in the capital so get along if you’re around.
Don’t miss this opportunity to hear from some of the best in the business as they unpack the power of competitive advantage and how it’s fueled the rise of some of New Zealand’s most successful tech companies. Join to hear from:
🎤 Emma Procter - Research Manager at PikPok
🎤 John Mitchell - Founder of Arlo Training Management Software
🎤 Alliv Samson -Co-founder and Chief Growth Officer at Kami
🎤 Shane Bartle - CEO at Storbie
🎤 Alex Burke - CEO at Optimal
🎤 Sarah Berkowski - CRO at Timescapes (ex Tradify)
Get your ticket here.
Pod Pick: Wild Hearts with Magic Brief Founder George Howes: Another banger from the team over a Blackbird with a new entry in the Wild Hearts podcast series. We know there’s a problem, we’re drowning in slop. George Howes has a fix. As the former creative lead at Eucalyptus, George saw firsthand how performance marketing was broken—and decided to build something better. Enter MagicBrief: a tool designed to capture creative intelligence, not just analytics.
George breaks down:
📈 The 15 traits of high-performing creative teams
🧠 Why feedback loops—not freedom—unlock the best work
🤖 How AI can enhance creative strategy without replacing it
🎨 Why taste still matters in a world of AI-generated content
This episode is a must-listen for anyone at the intersection of marketing, product, and creativity. Subscribe and listen now.
Is the next techno-utopian race towards colonizing the sea instead of the stars?: There seems to be something that happens to billionaires after a certain level of money and success which pushes them to find some new frontier to conquer.
While many of the world’s most famous founders are racing into space in various phallic shaped rockets, there’s a different breed of techno-utopians testing the waters of colonizing the sea instead of the stars.
One of the weirder stories I read while I was on break was this one from Mark Yarm over at the NYT diving into the strange world ‘seasteaders’. It’s a fascinating, slightly surreal read.
It also makes me wonder if the next billionaire bolt holes in New Zealand won’t be bunkers inland but sea-pods off shore.
Someone get on it, if this article is anything to go by, there’s money to be made.
Want to get in touch with a news tip, a slice of feedback or just to chat? Email hello@caffeinedaily.co