Events > UK Southeast Asia Tech Week 2026

Manila Programme (9-10 February)

Time Event
DAY 1 - 9 FEBRUARY
NEW WORLD HOTEL, MAKATI
08:45 - 09:15 REGISTRATION
09:15 - 09:20

Welcome Message by

His Majesty’s Ambassador to the Philippines Sarah Hulton OBE
09:20 - 09:35

Keynote Address by

Philippines Government
09:35 - 09:50

Keynote Address by

Minette Navarrete, Founder and Managing Partner, Kickstart Ventures

09:50 - 10:10

UK Tech Showcase: ARUP’s Digital Twins
10:10 - 10:50

Panel Discussion 1: AI Agents: Your New Co-workers and Digital Minions 

Moderated by:
Dominic Ligot, Director for AI Ethics and Data Governance

Panellists:

Michelle Alarcon, President and Co-Founder. AAP
Alexis Collado, Co-Founder, SWARM
Sara Venturina, Chief Data Officer, Gcash
Lloyd Cameron, First Secretary, British Embassy Manila 
Albert Phelps, Co-Founder, Tomoro.ai
10:50 - 11:05 Coffee Break and Group Photo
11:05 - 11:25 Growth Stories: AI Use Case: EdTech Hub
11:25 - 11:35 Swarm AI Report Presentation
11:35 - 12:15

Meet the Innovators: 10 UK Companies Shaping the Future of AI & Data Infrastructure
12:15 - 13:25 Lunch Break
13:25 - 13:30

Welcome back by

Rhiannon Harries, Deputy Trade Commissioner for Asia Pacific (Southeast Asia)
13:30 - 14:10 ASEAN TradeTech Lookbook Launch and Fireside Chat
14:10 - 14:25 Keynote from Lito Villanueva, Fintech Alliance, Chairman
14:25 - 15:05

Panel Discussion 2: Keep Calm and Outsmart Scammers Across the PH Digital Economy


Moderated by:

Ava Taniajura, Managing Director - Philippines, British Standards Institute


Panellists:

Roberto Figueroa, BSP Legal Counsel, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas
Jessel Tuvida Vice President and Head Consumer Banking Group, BDO
Miguel Geronilla, CISO, Gcash
Renato Paraiso, Undersecretary, Cybercrime Investigation and 
Coordinating Centre (CICC)
Milko Radotic, VP of Sales, iProov
Jason Chan, Head of Government Relations for APAC, Sumsub
15:05 - 15:25 UK Tech Showcase: iProov x Union Digital Bank
15:25 - 15:45 OPSS / E-commerce Platform Security Panel
15:45 - 16:25

Panel Discussion 3: Mind the Hack: Why Cyber Incidents are no laughing matter

Moderated by:
Sam Chittick, The Asia Foundation

Panellists:
Julius Gorospe, Undersecretary, DICT
Irish Salandanan-Almedia, Chief Privacy Officer, Globe Telecom
Daniel Zapico, Executive Principal Security Principal, NCC Group
Germaine Tan, Field CISO, Darktrace
Pip Morgan, Cybersecurity Lead, British Embassy Manila
16:25 - 16:35 Coffee Break
16:35 - 16:45

Fireside Chat: Tea, Tech and Transactions
16:45 - 16:50

Closing Remarks by

Iain Frenkiel, Director for Trade and Investment, British Embassy Manila
AYALA MUSEUM
18:00 - 22:00 Evening Reception
18:15 - 18:20

Opening Remarks by

His Majesty’s Ambassador to the Philippines Sarah Hulton OBE
18:20 - 18:30

Message from

Rhiannon Harries, Deputy Trade Commissioner

  • A reflection of the UK in The Philippines work on Tech
18:30 - 18:35

Message from

Michelle Alarcon, President, AI and Analytics Association of the Philippines
DAY 2 - 10 FEBRUARY
KICKSTART VENTURES OFFICE, MAKATI
08:30 - 09:00   REGISTRATION  
09:00 - 09:05

Opening Remarks by

Rhiannon Harries, Deputy Trade Commissioner for Asia Pacific (Southeast Asia)
09:05 - 10:35 Business Matching Round 1
10:35 - 10:50          Coffee Break
10:50 - 12:20 Business Matching Round 2
12:20 - 13:20  Lunch Break
13:20 - 14:20

Fireside Chat: Spotlighting Southeast Asian Tech Markets


Panel Speakers:
Josh Warland, First Secretary for Digital Economy and Technology, British 
Embassy Ho Chi Minh
Zak Lawton, First Secretary Digital and Head of Investment, British 
Embassy Bangkok
Germaine Dowling, Senior Technology Adviser, British Embassy Bangkok
14:20 - 15:00 Travel to Site Visit  
15:00 - 17:00 PLDT’s VITRO Data Centre - Site Visit