New region to support growing Kiwi customer base, including Government and Financial Services
SUNNYVALE, Calif, and Auckland, New Zealand — Today, Google Cloud announced its first cloud region is coming to New Zealand to meet growing demand for cloud services locally and around the world. Globally, Google Cloud also recently shared plans to add cloud regions in three additional countries — Malaysia, Mexico, and Thailand — to join five other previously announced regions coming soon to Berlin, Dammam, Doha, Tel Aviv, and Turin.
The New Zealand cloud region will give Kiwi businesses the choice to keep their data onshore, retain data sovereignty and drive their digital transformation efforts locally with speed, security and scalability at the core. A recent report by AlphaBeta, commissioned by Google New Zealand, found that if leveraged fully, digital transformation could create up to NZD$46.6 billion in economic value by 2030, the equivalent of the GDP of Canterbury and Hawkes’s Bay.
"Kiwis are world famous for ingenuity and entrepreneurial spirit and we want to give New Zealand businesses the right platform to serve as a foundation for growth and innovation," said Alister Dias, Vice President, Google Cloud Australia & New Zealand. "Whether it's getting smarter about the use of data, or having the flexibility of an open-platform that can adapt to changing market and regulatory conditions, our New Zealand region will give customers key controls that will enable them to maintain low latency and the highest security, data residency, and compliance standards."
When launched, the region will bring high-performance, low-latency services and products to local customers, and will have three zones to help protect against service disruptions. Google Cloud currently has a Dedicated Cloud Interconnect in Auckland to support New Zealand customers. The New Zealand cloud region will be Google Cloud’s third region in Australasia, joining Sydney and Melbourne. Google Cloud has 11 cloud regions already in operation in JAPAC.
Google has now marked 15 years on the ground in New Zealand, and last year announced the opening of its first purpose-built office in Auckland as well as the establishment of a New Zealand-based engineering team, to drive deeper adoption of AI and ML across the country.
“For over 15 years our team has been working closely with businesses, communities and educators in New Zealand to support them with the skills they need to succeed in a digital future,” said Caroline Rainsford, Country Director, Google New Zealand. “Bringing a new cloud region to Aotearoa shows Google’s increasing investment and will allow us to partner more deeply with local businesses, to deliver on our unique ability to bring enterprise and consumer ecosystems closer together - across Search, YouTube, Cloud - to deliver more powerful customer experiences, quickly and securely.”
“Kami was born out of the digital native era, where in order to scale globally we needed a partner like Google Cloud who could support us on our ongoing innovation journey. We have since delivered an engaging and dependable experience for millions of teachers and students around the world, so it’s incredibly exciting to hear about the new region coming to New Zealand. This investment from Google Cloud will enable us to deliver services with lower latency to our Kiwi users, which will further elevate and optimise our free premium offering to all New Zealand schools,” said Jordan Thoms, Chief Technology Officer at Kami.
“Our customers are at the heart of our business, and helping Kiwis find what they are looking for, faster than ever before, is our key priority. Our collaboration with Google Cloud has been pivotal in ensuring the stability and resilience of our infrastructure, allowing us to deliver world-class experiences to the 650,000 Kiwis that visit our site everyday. We welcome Google Cloud’s investment in New Zealand, and are looking forward to more opportunities to partner closely on our technology transformation journey,” said Anders Skoe, Chief Executive Officer at Trade Me.
“Digital transformation plays a key role in helping Vodafone deliver better customer experiences and connect all Kiwis. We welcome Google Cloud’s investment in New Zealand and look forward to working together to offer more enriched experiences for local businesses, and the communities we serve,” said Jason Paris, Chief Executive Officer at Vodafone New Zealand.
“The new Google Cloud region will help to address organizations’ increasing needs in the area of digital sovereignty and enable more opportunities for digital transformation and innovation in New Zealand. With this announcement, Google Cloud is providing customers with more choices in accessing capabilities from local cloud regions while aiding their journeys to hybrid and multi-cloud environments," said Daphne Chung, Research Director, Cloud Services and Software Research, IDC Asia/Pacific.
With 34 regions and 103 zones currently in operation around the world, Google Cloud’s global network of cloud regions is the foundation of the infrastructure it is building to support customers of all sizes and across industries.
About Google Cloud
Google Cloud accelerates every organization's ability to digitally transform its business. We deliver enterprise-grade solutions that leverage Google's cutting-edge technology — all on the cleanest cloud in the industry. Customers in more than 200 countries and territories turn to Google Cloud as their trusted partner to enable growth and solve their most critical business problems.
