State of the Nation in AI

Most of my time goes into building things with AI. At SONAI 2026, the Global AI Council Philippines’ yearly summit, I got to see the other side: the people deciding how AI will be governed in the country.

Rep. Javi Benitez, who heads the House technical working group on AI, laid out a 24-month roadmap to move the Philippines from “AI-ready” to “AI-powered”. What stuck with me was the “pilot trap”, where AI projects never make it past the prototype. As someone who builds prototypes, that hit close to home. Rep. Brian Poe closed the day with a call for a people-first AI strategy that protects workers, supports small businesses and strengthens public services.

I left with a clearer picture of where the country is heading, and a reminder that good AI work has to reach real people, not just a demo.