Plenary keynotes, focused breakout sessions, fireside chats and a CIO panel are helping enterprise leaders turn AI plans into business outcomes, October 20–23, 2026
The country’s most senior technology and business leaders are gathered at Shangri-La Boracay this week for the 9th Annual VST ECS CXO Tech Summit, organized by VST ECS Phils., Inc., the leading ICT distributor in the Philippines. Running from October 20 to 23 under the theme “Rethinking IT: Powering the AI-Driven Enterprise,” the invitation-only summit is focused on one clear goal: helping Philippine organizations move AI out of the pilot stage and into operations that deliver measurable results.
In the session halls are chief information officers, chief technology officers, chief information security officers, IT directors and digital transformation heads. They represent the country’s leading banks, hospitals, universities, manufacturers, retailers, energy firms, telcos, BPOs, hospitality and logistics companies, along with leaders from several government agencies.
Why 2026 Is the Year for Results
In his welcome address, Jimmy Go, President and CEO of VST ECS Phils., Inc., addressed the question every leader in the room shares: what should their organization actually do about AI? He cautioned that the time for experimenting is over, as the organizations pulling ahead are already using AI in customer service, credit scoring, demand forecasting, document processing and software development.
“Two years ago, AI was a demo. Last year, it was a pilot. This year, the leaders who are pulling ahead have moved it into production. Technology is no longer a department. Technology is now the business itself,” Mr. Go said.
Mr. Go reminded delegates that Philippine enterprises are making this move under real pressure. AI’s appetite for computing power has triggered a global shortage in memory and storage, pushing up hardware costs and delaying some enterprise deployments into 2027. At home, Executive Order 119 has strengthened the government’s data residency and data sovereignty policies, raising the bar for where and how sensitive data is kept. At the same time, new investments in local cloud and data centers are opening opportunities for companies ready to act.
He pointed to the country’s workforce as its strongest asset in this shift.
“We have one of the most digitally active, English-proficient, service-minded workforces in the world. AI will not replace that talent. But talent that uses AI will replace talent that does not. Our job as leaders is to make sure our people are on the right side of that line,” Mr. Go said.
Inside the Program: What Delegates Are Doing
The program is built so delegates leave with decisions, not just ideas. It pairs big-picture strategy on the main stage with focused, practical sessions that leaders are matching to the projects already on their desks.
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Breakout sessions: going deep on what matters most
Twenty-four breakout sessions run across four rooms at the same time. At 25 minutes each, they let delegates build their own path, compare competing approaches side by side, and put specific questions to solution specialists. The sessions cover four practical areas:
- Securing AI and the enterprise. Automating the security operations center, zero-trust enforcement, API security as a board-level issue, and DNS-based threat detection (Stellar Cyber, Fortinet, Akamai, iboss, EfficientIP, Versa Networks).
- Building AI-ready infrastructure. Campus networks, data center design, AI “token factories,” modern network models and AI at the edge (Huawei, APC by Schneider Electric, H3C, Arista Networks, Samsung B2B, ASUS, Nutanix).
- Getting the data foundation right. Why AI pilots stall before production, how AI changes the value of data, and why data resilience comes before AI (YugabyteDB, Seagate, NetApp, Rubrik, Cloudera).
- Understanding the real cost and impact of AI. The economics of running AI, AI as the enterprise’s new operating system, and AI’s effect on productivity and day-to-day IT operations (HPE, Cisco, Oracle, Dell Technologies, HP, Hexnode).
Plenary sessions: setting the strategy
In the Sagana Ballroom, the full delegation is hearing from regional and global technology leaders on where enterprise AI is heading and what it takes to get there. The plenaries are giving delegates clear guidance on:
- Running agentic AI applications at scale, and moving from “AI-ready” to “AI-native” infrastructure
- Choosing between private, hybrid and multi-cloud setups for AI workloads
- Defending the enterprise as AI reshapes both cyberattacks and cyber defense • Leading governance, risk and compliance, and using generative AI that is commercially safe • Powering AI sustainably as energy demand grows, and building a data foundation that stays under local control
Plenary speakers come from Nutanix, Fortinet, Dell Technologies, Cisco, H3C, HPE, Huawei, HP and AMD, APC by Schneider Electric, VMware by Broadcom, Adobe, Autodesk, AWS, Archer, Fastly, TrendAI, Lenovo and Synology.
Fireside chats and the CIO panel: learning from peers
Three fireside chats on Cybersecurity, AI in Action and Infrastructure, each moderated by a VST ECS executive, are giving delegates room to raise their own challenges and get candid answers. The summit’s CIO panel brings together technology leaders from BDO Unibank, Energy Development Corporation, St. Luke’s Medical Center, Enshored, Monde Nissin, Miriam College and K-Logistikus. Across seven industries, they are sharing what has worked, what has not, and what they would do differently.
Mr. Go challenged delegates to make the most of every session.
“Don’t just listen, learn. Don’t just network, collaborate. Don’t just observe change, prepare to lead it. Every session is an opportunity to take home one idea that can transform your business tomorrow,” he said.
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Beyond the Sessions
Between sessions, delegates are visiting 52 partner booths for live demonstrations and one-on-one consultations with solution specialists. In the evenings, gatherings around Shangri-La Boracay let leaders carry the day’s conversations forward with peers and technology partners in a more relaxed setting.
Key insights from each day are being published in the summit’s digital CXO Magazine. Conversations can also be followed online through the official hashtags #RethinkingIT2026 and
#VSTECSCXOTechSummit2026.
The VST ECS CXO Tech Summit 2026 is by invitation only.
