25927 (2026). Hon Phil Twyford to the Minister of Immigration

Written Question

Published date: 19 Jun 2026

Metadata

Document type:	Written Question
Parliament number:	54
Question number:	25927 (2026)
Question asked:	04 Jun 2026
Member asking:	Hon Phil Twyford
Portfolio:	Minister of Immigration
Minister replying:	Hon Erica Stanford
Answer received:	15 Jun 2026
Status:	Question Answered
Reply type:	Reply
Document ID:	WQ_25927_2026
Document guid:	6e9b418a-3fee-4935-9aa3-2642b70de5b0

25927 (2026). Hon Phil Twyford to the Minister of Immigration: Has Artificial Intelligence been used as part of the Biometric Capability Upgrade; if so, has the use of Artificial Intelligence directly lead to any delays, if there have been any, to the Biometric Capability Upgrade?

Hon Erica Stanford: INZ has used Artificial Intelligence in the form of biometric matching algorithms since 2016. One of the goals of the Biometric Capability Update (BCU) was to update the biometric algorithms responsible for facial and fingerprint matching. The BCU did not use any other form of (analytical, predictive, generative, or agentic) Artificial Intelligence. I am advised that artificial Intelligence did not specifically cause any delays to the project, which was discontinued in December 2025.