Labour pledges independent AI regulator, Office of AI in DPMC, and creator copyright framework

The Labour Party has pledged, if elected, to establish an independent AI regulator, a cross-government Office of AI within the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, copyright rules ensuring creators are paid for their work, and new requirements on data centres.

Labour leader Chris Hipkins and Technology and Innovation spokesperson Reuben Davidson announced the policy at Victoria University of Wellington's tech hub on Wednesday morning, 9 September 2026. RNZ

The proposed AI regulator would sit outside the Department of Internal Affairs as an independent body. Its mandate would extend beyond overseeing a social media ban for under-16s, encompassing broader regulatory functions across the AI sector.

Separately, Labour's proposed Office of AI would be established within DPMC using existing resources. Its role would be coordinating AI policy across government and developing workforce standards. The policy also said a senior minister would carry responsibility for AI, with a whole-of-government work programme published so the public can see what action is being taken.

On copyright, Labour committed to developing a framework for the use of copyright material by AI, including how creators can control and be remunerated for use of their work. This sits alongside a commitment to ban non-consensual deepfake pornography.

The policy addresses data centre infrastructure directly. Labour would require data centres to secure their own renewable energy supply, pay their own connection costs, reduce electricity demand during peak stress periods, and use water efficiently.

Labour also committed to enabling an AI in Education team to support schools, teachers and students to use AI safely.

Internationally, the policy commits to working closely with Australia to align AI standards and approaches, and with Pacific countries on safety and security.

On te Tiriti obligations, Labour pledged to work with iwi and hapū on how Māori data is collected, owned, governed and used.

The copyright commitment lands against an existing policy process. On 26 May 2026, the Government announced proposed changes to the Copyright Act, including extending the protection for most copyright and related rights by 20 years. MBIE

Separately, a bill amending the Social Security Act 2018 to allow greater use of automated decision-making in the social welfare system was introduced, with most provisions taking effect on 1 July 2026. Library of Congress

The broader context here is that Labour's package ties together several threads that have so far moved through government in piecemeal fashion. Copyright reform is already underway through MBIE. Automated decision-making in the welfare system is being enabled through standalone legislation. Online safety regulation has been debated across multiple cycles. What Labour is proposing is a coordinating architecture: a minister with cross-cutting accountability, an Office of AI inside DPMC to drive coherence, and an independent regulator with a mandate wider than any single harm category.

The decision to house the Office of AI in DPMC rather than DIA is worth noting. DPMC gives the AI portfolio proximity to the centre of government and to the Prime Minister's policy apparatus. Placing the regulator outside DIA, which currently administers online safety functions, signals an intention to keep regulatory enforcement at arm's length from the operational department.

The data centre requirements, similarly, push infrastructure costs back onto operators rather than treating AI build-out as a public good to be subsidised. Requiring renewable energy supply and peak-demand reduction places AI infrastructure squarely within existing electricity system constraints.

The Māori data governance commitment, framed around collection, ownership, governance and use, goes beyond consultation language and touches on questions of data sovereignty that iwi and hapū have pressed in other policy contexts.

For those working in and around Parliament, the package's practical test, if Labour forms a government, would be sequencing. The Office of AI could be established relatively quickly using existing DPMC resources. An independent regulator requires legislation. The copyright framework for AI use intersects with the Copyright Act review already in motion. How those workstreams align, or conflict, will determine whether the coordinating architecture functions as intended or produces overlapping mandates.