At Connexis Connections 2026, we met someone extraordinary — 14‑year‑old Amy Roux from Pukekohe, who has built a fully functioning New Zealand power‑grid simulator from scratch. Her project isn’t just impressive for her age; it’s a genuinely effective teaching tool that demonstrates how generation, load, and grid stability interact in real time.
Amy walked us through her simulator on camera, explaining each part of the system and how it responds when towns, substations, and generation sources are switched on or off. As she put it, “the whole point of the game is to get everything to match the demand.”
Amy designed the simulator to mirror the behaviour of New Zealand’s electricity system. In her demonstration, she showed how users can:
Her explanation was clear and confident. When asked whether switching towns or substations affects the display, she replied, “Yeah, it does affect it… if I turned off town 1 and town 2… they won’t have enough power so that’ll start flashing red.”
She even demonstrated how tripping a substation can collapse the system entirely — and how careful balancing brings it back to normal operation.
Amy told us she spent 497 hours building the simulator, not including the website she created so people can explore the model online. Her goal is simple: to help more young people understand how electricity works and inspire them to explore the industry.
Her enthusiasm was infectious. She spoke about taking the simulator to schools, sharing it with students, and encouraging curiosity about the systems that power everyday life.
In an industry facing workforce shortages and increasing technical complexity, seeing a Year 10 student build a functioning grid model — complete with generation, load, switching, and fault behaviour — is a reminder of how powerful early engagement can be.
Amy’s simulator is more than a school project. It’s a spark of future talent, and we were thrilled to meet her at Connexis Connections 2026.
