The tech industry is booming in Manawatū, thanks largely to the close-knit community experts who choose to live in the region. We sat down with local tech expert Michael, who is making a difference in the tech world all the way from Palmy.

Michael Davis grew up in Gisborne where he was able to develop a passion for gaming and computer thanks in part to completing his full high school year curriculum in the first few weeks of term.

"I knew I wanted to work in tech since I first got into programming as part of my high school IT class," says Michael. "The class was focused on how to use a keyboard and a computer but our friends were raised on computers so it only took us a few weeks to get through the curriculum. After that our teacher let us go for it - as long as we were making something we could do what we wanted."

And so, as a teenager sitting in a decile 1 classroom in Tairawhiti, Michael's passion grew, leading him to move to Manawatū to attend Massey University in 2011 to complete his degree in engineering.

"I received a sports scholarship to Massey in Taekwon-Do and could choose between attending the Auckland or Palmerston North campus. At the time the Palmy Taekwon-Do club was very strong so it drove me to choose Manawatū - I have pretty much been here since!"

Although Michael no longer participates in the sport now, he enjoyed many highs competing internationally throughout high school and beyond, including 6 World Championships. In 2015 he made the decision to prioritise his career over sport when he first started at Levno.

Little did Michael know that he would stay with Levno for the next nine years, watching the team grow from 5 to over 60, during which time the company would develop new bases in Wellington and Auckland, and even expand into Europe with a base in Dublin, Ireland. Michael worked his way from quality assurance up to Chief Technical Officer during his time with the company and enjoyed being a part of the quickly developing business.

"The changing environment was a big part of why I stayed for so long. I knew I wanted to work at companies of different sizes and structures but I ended up gaining the experience all while working for the same company."

Now, Michael has finished his time with Levno and is self-employed working full time as a video game developer making a game that will come out later this year. It's a dream come true for Michael who was able to get a publisher on board to support the venture after his de,o got some serious traction online last year. In fact, Michael is surprised there aren't more professional game developers in the region.

"We have some cool tech companies in our region, lots of interesting companies that are doing crazy things that even I struggle to explain. These companies are full of talented tech workers in the region but for whatever reason we don't have many pro game developers - which is strange because New Zealand as a whole punches above its weight for the game industry. I saw something recently that said our game development industry is bigger than Australia's. That isn't just per capita, it is just bigger."

Michael is doing his best to help grow this game developer talent pool locally by coordinating a networking group specifically for tech experts working in the gaming industry. Michael has long been part of ManawaTech, and industry led, non profit organisation that is a collective of local experts committed to supporting our thriving local technology hub, and is keen to use this format to promote a small off-shoot.

"While I was at Levno we had worked closely with ManawaTech, even finding a couple of employees through the network. I've always found it a cool thing to be part of - they organise events and meetups and you feel like a real part of the community. The meet ups are especially crucial for keeping in touch with your community and your mates when you’re working alone on these businesses. We’ve started a game developers one recently for this very reason. It’s a good excuse to get together, chat and have some pizzas.”

This interconnected community is what plays a big part in keeping Michael and his family local. Although they have tried other towns out, they know Manawatū is the end game for them.

“We moved to Gisborne for a year, then tried Masterton for a year for my wife’s work while I worked remotely. Ultimately though, we moved back to Palmerston North properly two years ago when we had our son and were wanting somewhere we could settle down. We had already spent eight years in Palmy and convinced my mum to join us too.”

Michael is enjoying being part of the Manawatū tech scene and looking forward to watching the industry continue to flourish.

“It’s such an exciting industry to be part of because you can go global from day one. Games are a weightless export so it is definitely the kind of industry New Zealand needs to be fostering and developing. We can create a crazy big wave from our strange end of the world, which would create a whole lot of value and result in some highly paid people.”

If you are interested in joining Michael’s group meetup - Game Dev Palmy - you can find out more and get in touch here.