A major five-day national event centered on artificial intelligence, digital transformation, and innovation is coming to Bacolod City this July, as the Transformative AI Network puts the finishing touches on TRAIN 2026 — formally known as the Transformative AI Network: AI & Innovation Networking Week.
What TRAIN 2026 Is and Why It Matters
Set to run from July 20 to 24, 2026, the event will be held at the SMX Convention Center in Bacolod City. According to the Transformative AI Network, the gathering is designed to bring together a broad cross-section of Philippine society — including government agencies, private sector companies, academic institutions, civil society groups, startup founders, and technology communities — under a single, structured national forum.
The event’s core ambition, organizers said, is to accelerate the country’s transition toward an AI-ready future by creating a space where stakeholders can align on priorities, share knowledge, and translate ideas into concrete action. The program will include conferences, masterclasses, roundtable discussions, startup pitches, technology showcases, investor engagement sessions, and community networking activities.
The Convenor Behind the Initiative
Spearheading TRAIN 2026 is Jocelle Batapa-Sigue, a lawyer, digital countryside advocate, and the convenor of both the Transformative AI Network and the Philippine ICT Innovation Network. She previously served as Undersecretary for ICT Industry Development, giving her deep familiarity with the intersection of technology policy and grassroots digital empowerment.
In a statement attributed to her by the Transformative AI Network, Batapa-Sigue emphasized that AI readiness cannot rest on technology alone. “We believe that AI readiness requires more than technology. It requires partnerships, skills, governance, innovation ecosystems, and communities working together. TRAIN 2026 is designed to bring these stakeholders into one space where ideas can become action,” she said.
Her involvement signals that TRAIN 2026 is positioned not merely as a technology conference but as a policy and ecosystem-building exercise — one that looks beyond Metro Manila and toward regional centers like Bacolod as engines of digital growth in the Philippines.
A Week Structured Around Five Thematic Pillars
Rather than a single general agenda, organizers have deliberately divided the five days into distinct thematic focus areas. Each day of the event will be dedicated to one of the following themes, according to the Transformative AI Network:
- Connected Communities and Innovation Ecosystems
- AI-Powered Enterprises
- Digital Business, Inclusion and Sustainable Growth
- AI Startups and Innovation
- Global AI Futures
This thematic architecture is intended to ensure that the event addresses the complete spectrum of AI adoption in the Philippines — from community-level digital inclusion efforts and small enterprise adoption, all the way up to large-scale enterprise deployment, startup financing, and international AI governance considerations.
The structure also means that different types of attendees — whether a local government technology officer, a startup founder seeking investors, or a corporate executive evaluating AI tools — will find programming specifically relevant to their concerns on dedicated days throughout the week.
Growing List of Industry Partners
Several private sector organizations have already committed to supporting the event. According to the Transformative AI Network, confirmed industry partners include Converge Global Business, Ignite Telecommunications, Dito Telecommunity, JustPressOne, Cirrolytix Research Services, and Colliers Philippines — a mix of telecommunications providers, research firms, real estate advisors, and technology companies.
The involvement of multiple telecommunications partners, in particular, reflects the event’s emphasis on connectivity as a foundational layer of any meaningful AI deployment strategy, especially in areas outside the National Capital Region where infrastructure gaps remain a challenge.
Participation Still Open Ahead of July Dates
Organizers are continuing to expand the event’s roster of participants. The Transformative AI Network said it is actively inviting additional sponsors, speakers, paper presenters, exhibitors, meeting hosts, investors, startup founders, and delegates to register and participate before the July 20 opening.
For startups, TRAIN 2026 represents a particularly significant opportunity — the program includes dedicated investor engagement activities and startup pitch sessions, offering founders a structured avenue to present their companies to a national audience of potential backers and partners.
For policymakers and academics, the roundtable discussions and paper presentation components provide a channel to contribute to the broader national conversation on AI governance, ethics, and skills development — areas that are increasingly urgent as AI tools become more accessible and widely deployed across industries.
Bacolod as a Hub for National Tech Dialogue
The choice of Bacolod City as the host venue is consistent with a broader movement in the Philippine technology community to hold major digital and innovation events outside Metro Manila. SMX Convention Center Bacolod offers the infrastructure to accommodate a large-scale, multi-day national conference, and the city has increasingly positioned itself as a regional hub for business process outsourcing, ICT, and innovation activities.
TRAIN 2026 is shaping up to be one of the more significant technology gatherings on the national calendar for 2026, bringing together the kind of multi-sector participation that is typically seen only at Metro Manila events — and doing so in the heart of the Western Visayas region.
Originally reported by: Visayas Daily News / wire reports
