Generative AI creates real opportunities and real concerns. We would rather be upfront about how we use it than treat it as a hidden tool or a marketing buzzword. This is a plain statement of what AI does and does not do at Iconic Games today, and how we are thinking about its future role in education.
How AI currently supports the work
AI-assisted tools may support parts of our day-to-day work, including:
- Brainstorming and organising research
- Drafting and reviewing written material
- Coding assistance and troubleshooting
- Early prototyping and design exploration
- Testing ideas and exploring different approaches
AI supports the work. It does not independently decide the company vision, our educational priorities, what learners should learn, what is culturally appropriate, what should be published, or what business decisions we make. Human responsibility remains central to all of it.
What AI output is not
An AI-generated output is not automatically:
- Correct
- Curriculum-aligned
- Safe
- Age-appropriate
- Culturally appropriate
- Educationally effective
- Fair
- Original
- Suitable for assessment
AI cannot provide formal curriculum approval, cultural approval, or specialist validation. Where any of those matter — and in education, they usually do — a person with the right knowledge checks the work.
How we may use AI in future learning
Carefully designed generative AI could potentially support future learning in ways we are still exploring. We are considering — not promising — that it may help by:
- Explaining concepts in different ways
- Providing additional practice
- Supporting language learning
- Creating interactive scenarios
- Helping learners reflect on their own progress
- Supporting accessibility
- Assisting with practical projects
- Helping facilitators or educators see where support may be needed
None of this is a completed product feature today. It describes the kind of thinking behind our future direction, not something currently live in Mīharo Kura, Mīharo Ahau, or any Iconic Games product.
Principles for responsible use
Any future learner-facing AI we build would need to meet a clear bar before it ships, including:
- A clear educational purpose
- Human accountability and human oversight
- Transparent disclosure to learners and whānau
- Age-appropriate design
- Strong privacy protections and minimal collection of personal information
- Accuracy and bias review
- A clear way to report or correct harmful or incorrect outputs
- Appropriate specialist and cultural review
- Genuine care around Māori data, knowledge, and cultural authority
- Continued testing before any claims are made publicly
Learner privacy
Children should not need to surrender unnecessary personal information to get a useful learning experience. We do not have a finished technical solution to describe here, and we will not claim one before it exists. Any future AI system involving learners would need careful privacy and safety design before release — not after.
Helping learners understand AI itself
Part of preparing tamariki, rangatahi, and adult learners for the future is helping them understand AI — not just use it. That includes:
- What AI can and cannot do
- How to verify what it produces
- Bias and misinformation
- Privacy
- Responsible use and appropriate acknowledgement
- Maintaining independent thinking
- How AI is changing work, business, creativity, and society
Iconic Games uses AI as a tool, not as a substitute for human vision, educational responsibility, cultural knowledge, or genuine learning. We see meaningful possibilities for generative AI in education, but those possibilities must be developed transparently, safely, and with people — not simply applied to them.
This is a living statement and will be updated as our thinking, and our products, develop further.
First published: 21 July 2026. Last reviewed: 21 July 2026.