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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider Visayas devider ‎Solidum: Develop AI to help solve PH problems

‎Solidum: Develop AI to help solve PH problems

Published Aug 4, 2026 03:58 pm
‎DOST Secretary Renato U. Solidum Jr. at the 2026 AI Fest in Iloilo City. (Tara Yap)
‎DOST Secretary Renato U. Solidum Jr. at the 2026 AI Fest in Iloilo City. (Tara Yap)
‎ILOILO CITY — Secretary Renato Solidum Jr. of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) urged the development of artificial intelligence (AI) that will help find solutions for Filipino problems.
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‎“We are not trying to out-build Silicon Valley. We are not competing head-to-head in developing massive frontier language models. That is not our race to win. Frankly, it doesn’t need to be,” Solidum said during the 2026 AI Fest in Iloilo City.
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‎While the Philippines is not far behind in global rankings for AI readiness, Solidum challenged AI developers to find solutions for Philippine-based problems that will serve fellow Filipinos.
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‎“Our advantage lies elsewhere: In our people, our data, and our deep understanding of local problems that foreign models were never trained to solve,” Solidum told delegates in his Aug. 3 keynote address.
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‎Solidum cited examples of AI-based technology built abroad that failed to fully address local issues and concerns.
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‎One is weather forecasting models, which are not designed to forecast perennial tropical cyclones. Another example is traffic management systems that cannot recognize passenger jeepney, tricycles or pedicabs.
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‎Solidum challenged Filipino AI developers to prioritize finding solutions to these problems.
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‎“Progress isn’t about creating technologies that are nice to have. Progress is about building technologies we need to have. We are here to deliver real-world solutions to real-world Filipino problems,” Solidum said
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‎The AI Fest is the second spearheaded by DOST-6 and backed by other partner agencies, the academe, and the private sector.
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‎DOST-6 Director Rowen R. Gelonga reiterated that the AI Fest was a key event after Western Visayas became the first in the country to create a five-year road map.
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‎DOST Undersecretary Sancho A. Mabborang was also present during the AI Fest.
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