Aotearoa Clinical Trials

What Aotearoa Clinical Trials does

Aotearoa Clinical Trials (ACTT) is a New Zealand-based clinical trial site network operating as a non-profit organization, founded in the early 2000s (sources cite 2001 and 2004). The organization manages clinical trial operations across two hospital-based sites: Middlemore Hospital in Auckland and Whangārei Hospital in Northland, with a workforce of 51-100 employees. ACTT partners with Te Whatu Ora (Health New Zealand) to access principal investigators and operates as the operational infrastructure for clinical research within New Zealand's public hospital system. The CEO is Dr. Edward Watson.

The network claims first-mover status as New Zealand's first GCSA-certified clinical trial site network and has obtained IAOCR Workforce Quality Accreditation. ACTT has developed particular therapeutic expertise in metabolic diseases, including diabetes, obesity, and MASH, capitalizing on New Zealand's demographic profile with significant representation of Māori, Pacific, Asian, and South Asian populations — groups with high metabolic disease prevalence that are increasingly sought after by global sponsors seeking diverse trial populations. The organization functions as a regional site management organization (SMO), providing the operational layer (recruitment, study coordination, regulatory, data) on top of public-hospital investigator capacity.

ACTT's revenue model operates through per-study clinical trial service fees charged to pharmaceutical sponsors and CROs. The organization maintains relationships with major pharmaceutical companies (AbbVie, Pfizer, Roche, AstraZeneca, Novartis, BMS, Eli Lilly, Gilead, and Janssen) and leading CROs (IQVIA, Syneos, PAREXEL, ICON, Labcorp, PRA Health Sciences, Medpace, and Novotech). In July 2024, ACTT entered a strategic partnership with US-based Care Access to add decentralized clinical trial (DCT) capabilities and integrate with a global research site network, marking a shift from purely on-site hospital-based delivery toward hybrid trial modalities.

Name

Aotearoa Clinical Trials

Legal name

Aotearoa Clinical Trials

Website

https://aotearoatrials.nz

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Aotearoa Clinical Trials is a New Zealand non-profit clinical trial site network operating at Middlemore and Whangārei Hospitals, serving major pharmaceutical sponsors and CROs with metabolic disease expertise across diverse populations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Clinical Trial Site Services

NAICS

Scientific Research and Development Services (5417)

SIC

Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro primary industry

Clinical Trial Site Operations & Study Coordination (HLAGACAE)

Keywords

• Clinical trial services
• Hospital-based trials
• Pharmaceutical sponsor support
• Decentralized clinical trials
• Investigator partnership programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Auckland

HQ country

New Zealand

HQ region

Oceania

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Clinical Trial Management Services: ACTT provides clinical trial management services as a network of hospital-based trial sites. They work with pharmaceutical sponsors, biotech companies, and CROs to conduct clinical trials in New Zealand, generating revenue through trial fees and management services.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

ACTT operates a network of hospital-based clinical trial sites across New Zealand, conducting Phase I-IV clinical trials with pharmaceutical sponsors and CROs. The organization manages feasibility assessments, ethics submissions, study start-up, participant recruitment, and data quality oversight, and through its partnership with Care Access, extends decentralized clinical trial capabilities including mobile research vehicles and virtual PIs.

Product overview

Aotearoa Clinical Trials operates as a network of hospital-based clinical trial sites in New Zealand, partnering with Middlemore Hospital and Whangārei Hospital. The organization provides clinical trial management services including feasibility coordination, ethics submissions, investigator partnerships, and participant recruitment for pharmaceutical sponsors and CROs. Through a strategic partnership with Care Access, ACTT extends its capabilities with decentralized trial technologies including mobile research vehicles and virtual PI services. The network focuses on therapeutic areas including metabolic diseases, diabetes, and obesity, serving the diverse populations of Counties Manukau and Northland.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Clinical Trial Site Network

Quantifiable outcome

• Feasibility response within 48-72 hours
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers17 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Care AccesscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2024Strategic partnership announced July 2024 to expand availability of clinical trials in diverse and under-represented communities throughout New Zealand. Care Access brings decentralized clinical trial (DCT) capabilities including mobile research vehicles, traveling clinicians, virtual PIs, and cutting-edge technology. ACTT joins Care Access's global network of over 200 research sites.
• Middlemore HospitalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHospital-based clinical trial site partnership in Counties Manukau region, serving a diverse population including Māori, Pacific, and Asian communities with high prevalence of metabolic diseases.
• Whangārei HospitalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHospital-based clinical trial site partnership in Te Tai Tokerau (Northland) region.
• Te Whatu Ora (Health New Zealand)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTe Whatu Ora (Health New Zealand) is the public health service of New Zealand. All doctors that ACTT partners with are employed by Te Whatu Ora. ACTT has agreements in place with these doctors outlining investigator responsibilities per FDA requirements.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• PAREXEL International: Established global CRO providing clinical trial site services to pharma and biotech. Overlaps in customer base (listed as ACTT CRO partner) and competes in the same clinical trial placement market.
• ICON plc: Global CRO (post-PRA Health Sciences merger) operating a large network of clinical trial sites. Competes for multi-region trial placement RFPs with the same pharmaceutical sponsor base that ACTT serves.
• Labcorp Drug Development (formerly Covance): Global CRO and central lab with embedded site management capabilities. Competes for end-to-end clinical trial delivery with the same enterprise pharma and biotech customer set as ACTT.
• Syneos Health: Global biopharmaceutical solutions CRO with site management operations. Competes for sponsor trial placement contracts with overlapping pharma sponsor customers and similar site-network delivery model.
• Medpace: Mid-to-large global CRO with site management and full-service trial operations. Overlaps with ACTT's sponsor base and offers an alternative site-network option for pharma clients running multi-region trials.
• IQVIA: Largest global CRO with extensive site management organization (SMO) and clinical trial site network worldwide. Overlaps with ACTT in providing trial sites to the same pharma sponsors but at vastly larger scale and across many geographies.

Regional players

• CMAX Clinical Research: Australian-based early-phase clinical trial unit operating in the same Asia-Pacific region. Comparable as an APAC clinical trial site operator serving global pharma sponsors, though focused on Phase 1 and operating in Australia rather than New Zealand.

Emerging players

• P1Vital: Specialty clinical research organization with experimental medicine and CNS focus. Comparable as a smaller, niche CRO/site operator targeting specific therapeutic indications with global pharma sponsors.

Direct peers

• Novotech: Asia-Pacific-focused CRO with established site management operations across the region including Australia and NZ. Directly comparable as an APAC site network serving global pharma sponsors for clinical trial placement and conduct.
• Care Access: U.S.-based decentralized clinical trial site network and ACTT's strategic partner. Operates the 200+ site global network that ACTT joined in 2024, and competes for the same DCT-enabled, diverse-population trial placements ACTT targets.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/AotearoaTrials
• Facebookfacebook.com/AotearoaClinTrials
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/aotearoa-clinical-trials

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Aotearoa Clinical Trials