38657 (2026). Francisco Hernandez to the Minister for Children

38657 (2026). Francisco Hernandez to the Minister for Children: How much, if any, was spent in the 2025/26 financial year in the Minister's departments, agencies, crown entities and any other bodies that the Minister is responsible for, if any, on artificial intelligence, including costs on training staff, deploying systems, maintaining subscriptions and any other associated costs?

Hon Karen Chhour: I am advised by Oranga Tamariki that $1.11 million was spent in the 2025/26 financial year on artificial intelligence. This included Microsoft Copilot subscriptions, staff training, privacy and cybersecurity risk assessments, and implementation of artificial intelligence pilots.