NZSMIRT takes its 2026 conference to Auckland's Grand Millennium with a 'Hybrid Intelligence' theme

The New Zealand Society of Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy (NZSMIRT) will hold its 2026 annual conference in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland from 10 to 13 September 2026, according to the society's own website. A day of educational workshops on 10 September opens proceedings, with the main conference programme of keynote presentations, expert panels and research showcases running from 11 to 13 September.

The conference will be held at the Grand Millennium Auckland, a hotel on Mayoral Drive in the Auckland CBD, the NZSMIRT website states. This differs from earlier directory listings that had named the Cordis Auckland as the venue; the society's own conference page is explicit that the Grand Millennium is the confirmed location, and NZSMIRT's social channels reinforce this by directing delegates to explore the city "within easy reach of the Grand Millennium".

This year's theme is "Human Intelligence (HI) and Artificial Intelligence: The confluence that defines medical imaging and radiation therapy practice", shortened by organisers to "Hybrid Intelligence". According to the conference programme overview published on the society's site, sessions will cover advanced practice, image interpretation, research in medical imaging, the changing landscape of medical imaging practice, ethical and regulatory issues around AI, education, patient-centred care, cultural safety, hybrid imaging and adaptive intelligence.

Registration is open through the society's event platform, with an early bird deadline that NZSMIRT extended to 26 August 2026, according to the society's own posts.

Who runs it

NZSMIRT is the professional body representing medical imaging technologists and radiation therapists in New Zealand, working across diagnostic imaging, radiation therapy, nuclear medicine, ultrasound, mammography, CT, PET/CT and MRI, according to the society's about page. It is registered as an incorporated society under the Incorporated Societies Act 2022 and describes itself as the recognised representative of the profession both nationally and internationally, holding seats on the International Society of Radiographers & Radiological Technologists and on the Allied Health Aotearoa New Zealand forum. The society is governed by a board of directors drawn from six regional areas covering the whole country, from Auckland/Northland to Otago/Southland, per its published leadership list.

Independent corroboration of the 2026 conference comes from Charles Sturt University's research output register, an institutional repository maintained by the Australian university, which records a staff member as an invited speaker at the "NZSMIRT Conference 2026 – Tāmaki Makaurau", delivering a workshop, three presentations and two posters over the same 10–13 September 2026 period, with the event's degree of recognition classified there as international.

Who it's for

The conference draws medical radiation technologists, radiographers, radiation therapists, sonographers and nuclear medicine practitioners from across New Zealand, alongside international speakers and delegates, based on the society's membership categories and the international recognition attached to the event by outside researchers. NZSMIRT's published membership benefits — continuing professional development support, funding opportunities, academic achievement awards and professional indemnity insurance — point to a delegate base drawn primarily from working clinicians and allied health professionals who use the conference for CPD credit, a requirement for registered health practitioners maintaining competence under the Medical Radiation Technology Board's recertification rules.

The venue

The Grand Millennium Auckland is a Qualmark Gold five-star hotel at 71 Mayoral Drive, on the corner of Vincent Street in the Auckland CBD, according to Tourism New Zealand's operator listing. The property has 452 rooms and suites, an indoor pool, gym and sauna, and five dining and bar outlets. It sits about 500 metres from Queen Street and roughly 22 kilometres from Auckland Airport, placing it within walking distance of the Auckland Town Hall, Aotea Square, the Civic Theatre and the Sky Tower — a compact footprint for a four-day programme where delegates move between workshop rooms, plenary sessions and their accommodation without leaving the block.

Why it matters for New Zealand business events

A four-day national conference with an international speaker list and CPD accreditation for practising clinicians is a meaningful piece of Auckland's professional and scientific calendar. The event brings a specialised healthcare workforce into the city for workshops, research presentations and networking across three main conference days, using a major CBD hotel's meeting facilities rather than a purpose-built convention centre — a reminder that a substantial share of New Zealand's association conference volume sits in the 200–500 delegate hotel band rather than in the convention centres.

For the directory, the dig also corrects the record: the venue is the Grand Millennium, not the Cordis, and the conference runs four days rather than one.