Director, AI co-founder, and one of New Zealand's most active angel investors, Serge van Dam also hosts more startup events than almost anyone else in the country.
Here's where to find him next in 2026.
Serge wears a lot of hats. He chairs or sits on the board of half a dozen NZ tech companies, including Re-Leased, Landlord Studio, CoGo and Tapi, co-founded the AI training company AI Supercharge, and has invested actively since 2015, with exits including Tradify, Publons and iMeasureU. He's also Operating Partner at Movac and sits on the KiwiSaaS Community Advisory Council.
All of that shows up in his events calendar. He runs Movac's Jam series (Sales Jam, Marketing Jam, Leadership Jam, Growth Jam, Capital Jam, Energy Jam), co-hosts the Startup Theatre Podcast, turns up at KiwiSaaS flagship nights like SaaSpocalypse Now and SaaSmas, and shows up everywhere from Tapi's own customer conference to founder retreats in Queenstown. If there's a room in New Zealand where tech founders, operators and investors are swapping real stories instead of pitch decks, there's a decent chance Serge is in it.
This page tracks where he'll be next. Most of these events are free or low-cost, and they're where the actual hiring conversations, partnership conversations and investor introductions happen, not the LinkedIn recap afterward. Bookmark this page instead of chasing the dates across six different Luma links.
We refresh this list on the 1st of every month. Check back for registration links as dates get closer.
Serge van Dam | Director, Investor, Operating Partner
hosts New Zealand's busiest startup events calendar
From Movac's Jam series to KiwiSaaS's biggest nights out, Serge brings together the country's sharpest founders and operators to swap real stories about what worked and what didn't.
Find Him Here in 2026
Date | Event | What it is | Where | Register |
July 22, 2pm | Movac Capital Jam (Auckland) | Kiwi tech founders and operators tell their best capital-raising stories, fast and furious format | Maritime Room, Auckland | |
August 6-7, all day | Morgo (Queenstown) | Two-day retreat for going-global CEOs to reconnect, re-energise and reimagine | Rendezvous Hotel, Queenstown | |
August 11, 12:30pm | Future of Work, hosted by Employment Hero (Wellington) | Lunchtime event on the future of work, including a panel on AI | Bowen St, Wellington | TBC |
August 20, 2pm | Movac Growth Jam (Christchurch) | Kiwi tech founders and operators tell their best growth stories, fast and furious format | Majestic on Durham, Christchurch | |
August 21, 8:30am | Gloves Off (Christchurch) | A half-day of mind-expanding AI show-and-tells for Kiwi tech companies | TBC | TBC |
September 16, all day | Canterbury Tech Summit (Christchurch) | Canterbury's tech community gathers to collaborate, share insights and explore growth acceleration | Te Pae Convention Centre, Christchurch | |
September 24, 8am | SaaSpocalypse Now (Wellington) | New Zealand's biggest SaaS conference, this year's theme is SaaSpocalypse | HNRY Stadium, Wellington | |
October 14, 2pm | Movac Leadership Jam (Auckland) | Kiwi tech founders and operators tell their best leadership stories, fast and furious format | Pipiri Lane, Auckland | TBC |
October 29, 6pm | Wake Up (Nelson) | Public lecture, a call to arms to double Nelson's productivity | TBC | TBC |
October 30, 9am | AI-First Business (Nelson) | Workshop on how to build an AI-first services business | TBC | TBC |
December 17, 5pm | SaaSmas (Wellington) | The best Christmas party in the tech sector | Dockside, Wellington | TBC |
Startup Theatre Podcast
Serge co-hosts Startup Theatre Podcast, real conversations with the founders, investors and operators actually building things in New Zealand, not the polished version you get after the fact. Also on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
