Pushpay was the big winner at the 2019 Hi-Tech Awards gala dinner in Auckland tonight, claiming the PwC Hi-Tech Company of the Year category Award.
A record-breaking crowd of close to 1100 attended the awards dinner, held to celebrate the successes of New Zealand hi-tech companies across 13 categories and to recognise the 2019 Flying Kiwi, Greg Cross.
In selecting Pushpay as the PwC Hi-Tech Company of the Year the international judges said, "Pushpay shows what happens when a metrics-mad company just keeps pushing. During 2018, Pushpay's platform was used by more than 7500 churches around the world to process more than $5B in contributions. CEO Chris Heaslip has built a strong and enduring "people first" culture that has endured even as the employee base globalized and grew into the hundreds."
The judges liked Pushpay's combination of metrics and mission, and applauds a Kiwi company where technology meets generosity.
Other big winners tonight were PredictHQ, taking out three awards – The Duncan Cotterill Most Innovative Hi-Tech Software Solution Award, the Kiwibank Most Innovative Hi-Tech Service Award and the Coretex Hi-Tech Emerging Company of the Year Award.
In addition, Robotics Plus took out the Callaghan Innovation Maori Company of the Year Award and the NZTE Most Innovative Hi-Tech Agritech Solution Award.
The Hi-Tech Awards judges said the calibre of this year's entrants was at an all-time high, making the job of selecting winners exceedingly challenging for the more than 70 local and international judges who assessed entrants across the 13 award categories.
Commenting on the 2019 Awards, New Zealand Hi-Tech Trust chair Jennifer Rutherford said it was great to hit so many highs this year with a record number of entries from right around the country and a record number of people attending the Gala Dinner.
"We've made great strides in the last 12 months to encourage diversity across the board and at the same time grow the awards programme. We are still on the journey but it's really pleasing to see progress being made and the Awards continuing to attract new entrants and at record levels," says Rutherford.
Tonight also marked the unveiling of the 2019 Flying Kiwi, Greg Cross. Rutherford said it was fantastic to be able to recognise the achievements of Greg on such a momentous night that is the biggest Hi-Tech Awards Gala dinner ever held.
"Greg has achieved so much in his own career and is truly an inspiring and passionate individual. He is someone who has spent so much of his life on the road, taking leading-edge NZ-founded tech companies like Power By Proxi and now Soul Machines to the world. His relentless drive and passion is inspiring to many of our up and coming companies. He is truly a worthy recipient of the prestigious Flying Kiwi award," adds Rutherford.
The 2019 NZ Hi-Tech Award winners are:
2019 Flying Kiwi and inductee into the Tait Communications Hi-Tech Hall of Fame
Greg Cross
Xero Hi-Tech Young Achiever Award
Winner: John Roy from Coretex
Visa Best Hi-Tech Solution for the Public Good Award
Winner: The Cacophony Project
IBM Most Inspiring Individual Award
Winner: Peter Beck
ATEED Hi-Tech Creative Technology Solution Award
Winner: Spalk
Callaghan Innovation Hi-Tech Maori Company of the Year Award
Winner: Robotics Plus
Duncan Cotterill Most Innovative Hi-Tech Software Solution Award
Winner: PredictHQ
Endace Most Innovative Hi-Tech Hardware Product Award
Winner: Taska Prosthetics
Kiwibank Most Innovative Hi-Tech Services Award
Winner: PredictHQ
NZTE Most Innovative Hi-Tech Solution for the Agritech Sector Award
Winner: Robotics Plus
Quick Circuit Best Contribution to the NZ Hi-Tech Sector by an Internationally Headquartered Company
Winner: Talent International
New Zealand Venture Investment Fund Hi-Tech Start-up Company of the Year
Winner: Whip Around
Coretex Hi-Tech Emerging Company of the Year
Winner: PredictHQ
Highly Commended: Fergus Software
PwC NZ Hi-Tech Company of the Year Award
Winner: PushPay
