The James Dyson Award Winners

Meet the Innovators

The Power of Naivety in Design

From Idea to Reality: The Design Process

The Job Market Challenge for New Graduates

Arla Gen 2: Revolutionizing Menstrual Cup

The Wind Filter: Harnessing Wind Power for

Pathfinder: Helping Children with Cerebral

The Importance of User-Centered Design

Designing for Practicality and User

The Importance of User Validation

Simple Mechanics for Easy Maintenance

Key Skills Learned Through Prototyping

The Value of Iteration and Testing

Aspirations for the Wind Filter Project

Advice for Young Designers

Closing Remarks and Future Prospects

Podcast Subscription Call-to-Action

In business, and in the innovation game, experience is valuable. But sometimes, not knowing how exactly things are supposed to be done can be a superpower.

This week’s episode of The Business of Tech celebrates three young New Zealand designers tackling problems that established businesses have overlooked, with fresh eyes, tight budgets and a willingness to ask basic questions.

Sophie West, the national winner of the 2026 James Dyson Award, (with around $10,000 in accompanying prize money), and runners-up Jos Williams and Aysha Jay are engineers and designers with big ideas – and small budgets. Their inventions address sustainable menstrual care, indoor air quality, and movement therapy for children with cerebral palsy.

Better period products

Massey University graduate West won with Arla Gen II, a compact device designed to clean and sterilise reusable menstrual cups and discs. It tackles an awkward barrier to adoption: boiling period products in a shared kitchen.

West surveyed 105 users and repeatedly tested how the device would feel, fit together and fit into daily routines. Her approach puts privacy and practicality alongside engineering, rather than treating them as afterthoughts.

Williams, a Victoria University of Wellington graduate, found inspiration while cycling beside a motorway, breathing traffic fumes.

His Windfilter harnesses something Wellington has in abundance. An outdoor turbine transfers rotational energy magnetically through a window to an indoor fan, drawing air through wool filters. No mains electricity or holes in the wall required.

It challenges the assumption that solving a problem always means adding batteries, electronics, or greater complexity.

Canterbury graduate Jay’s Path Finder is an adjustable device intended to guide crawling movements for children aged two to six with cerebral palsy, potentially reducing a task involving several therapists to one.

Learning to crawl

Working with the Centre of Movement, she observed therapy sessions rather than assuming she understood what children, parents and clinicians needed.

“I don’t know anything, so I need to go find out,” she says, describing the mindset behind her research.

Jay built her proof of concept with a budget of about $50, inexpensive components, and help from university technicians.

None of these inventions is a finished commercial product. Further testing, funding and development lie ahead. The graduates also describe a tough employment market, but a desire to stay in New Zealand and pursue their projects here.

West, Williams, and Jay now progress to the international award stage, with the top 20 international finalists announced on October 14 and the winners, chosen by Sir James Dyson, revealed on November 4.

Listen to the full interview with the Dyson Award winner and runners-up on The Business of Tech, streaming on iHeartRadio, Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

In business, and in the innovation game, experience is valuable. But sometimes, not knowing how exactly things are supposed to be done can be a superpower.
This week&rsquo;s episode of The Business of Tech celebrates three young New Zealand designers tackling problems that established businesses have overlooked, with fresh eyes, tight budgets and a willingness to ask basic questions.
Sophie West, the national winner of the 2026 James Dyson Award, (with around $10,000 in accompanying prize money), and runners-up Jos Williams and Aysha Jay are engineers and designers with big ideas &ndash; and small budgets. Their inventions address sustainable menstrual care, indoor air quality, and movement therapy for children with cerebral palsy.
Better period products
Massey University graduate West won with Arla Gen II, a compact device designed to clean and sterilise reusable menstrual cups and discs. It tackles an awkward barrier to adoption: boiling period products in a shared kitchen.
West surveyed 105 users and repeatedly tested how the device would feel, fit together and fit into daily routines. Her approach puts privacy and practicality alongside engineering, rather than treating them as afterthoughts.
Williams, a Victoria University of Wellington graduate, found inspiration while cycling beside a motorway, breathing traffic fumes.
His Windfilter harnesses something Wellington has in abundance. An outdoor turbine transfers rotational energy magnetically through a window to an indoor fan, drawing air through wool filters. No mains electricity or holes in the wall required.
It challenges the assumption that solving a problem always means adding batteries, electronics, or greater complexity.
Canterbury graduate Jay&rsquo;s Path Finder is an adjustable device intended to guide crawling movements for children aged two to six with cerebral palsy, potentially reducing a task involving several therapists to one.
Learning to crawl
Working with the Centre of Movement, she observed therapy sessions rather than assuming she understood what children, parents and clinicians needed.
&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know anything, so I need to go find out,&rdquo; she says, describing the mindset behind her research.
Jay built her proof of concept with a budget of about $50, inexpensive components, and help from university technicians.
None of these inventions is a finished commercial product. Further testing, funding and development lie ahead. The graduates also describe a tough employment market, but a desire to stay in New Zealand and pursue their projects here.
West, Williams, and Jay now progress to the international award stage, with the top 20 international finalists announced on October 14 and the winners, chosen by Sir James Dyson, revealed on November 4.
Listen to the full interview with the Dyson Award winner and runners-up on The Business of Tech, streaming on iHeartRadio, Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

The Business of Tech, hosted by leading tech journalist Peter Griffin. Every week they take a deep dive into emerging technology and news from the sector to help guide the important decisions all Business leaders make.

Issues such as cybersecurity, retaining trust after a cyberattack, business IT needs, purchasing SaaS tools and more.

New Episodes out every Thursday. Follow or subscribe to get it delivered straight to your favourite podcatcher.

@petergnz

@businessdesk_nz

Proudly sponsored by 2degrees Business!

 

The Business of Tech, hosted by leading tech journalist Peter Griffin. Every week they take a deep dive into emerging technology and news from the sector to help guide the important decisions all Business leaders make.
Issues such as cybersecurity, retaining trust after a cyberattack, business IT needs, purchasing SaaS tools and more.
New Episodes out every Thursday. Follow or subscribe to get it delivered straight to your favourite podcatcher.
@petergnz
@businessdesk_nz
Proudly sponsored by 2degrees Business!
&nbsp;

The Business of Tech

Small budgets, big ideas: Meet NZ’s Dyson Award stars

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/7784f840-c291-422a-924b-ad9000bbad71/clips/bb67763c-3ed4-4ca4-945c-b4db013d9259/transcript