Champions Sovereign Cloud and AI at National ICT Summit 2026

 

How do we move Philippine governance from mere compliance to absolute digital confidence? That was the defining question at the National Information and Communications Technology (NICT) Summit 2026 in Manila. Speaking to over 200 government Chief Information Officers (CIOs) and public sector tech leaders, MaroonStudios CEO James Mendoza laid out a bold roadmap for the country’s digital future. His message was clear: Data sovereignty is no longer a checkbox—it is a national imperative. 🌐 The Shift to "Geopatriation" & Digital Sovereignty With $100 billion being committed globally to sovereign compute infrastructure, and 75% of enterprise workloads trending toward "geopatriation," the public sector must pivot away from borderless, one-size-fits-all public clouds. To solve uniquely Filipino challenges—like strict data residency laws and maintaining public service continuity during typhoon season—MaroonStudios introduced a powerful, unified infrastructure ecosystem: The Sovereign Foundation (Converge Cloud): Powered by 890,000+ kilometers of fiber assets and local data centers (Angeles, Clark, Pasig, Caloocan), ensuring data stays firmly within Philippine borders. The Hyperscaler AI Foundation (Google Cloud): Integrated seamlessly into the sovereign stack, leveraging Gemini Enterprise to bring world-class AI directly to the government workplace. "AI is not here to replace our public servants. It is here to give them superpowers at the moment our citizens need them most. But before you can run AI, you need a cloud and AI foundation you can trust." — James Mendoza, CEO Special guest Steve Ledzian (CTO of Google Cloud Security and Mandiant) also joined the stage, reinforcing that uncompromising, built-in security is the bedrock of this multi-cloud architecture. 🛒 Modernizing Government Procurement We are officially stripping the bureaucracy out of tech adoption. MaroonStudios announced two major breakthroughs to accelerate public sector digital transformation: Converge Cloud One-Click Marketplace Launches with 20+ pre-vetted applications (like automated eKYC citizen onboarding tools), expanding to 100+ applications by the end of the year. PS-DBM eMarketplace Integration Major Announcement: All MaroonStudios Google Cloud products—including Google Workspace, Google Cloud, and Google Security—are now officially available on the PS-DBM eMarketplace. "Historically, government procurement has been a long, arduous journey of paperwork. We are bringing a bit of that 'checkout' magic to government IT. Bili na, Add to Cart na!" — James Mendoza 🤝 Strengthening Public Trust Beyond the keynote, Mendoza joined an expert panel on “Strengthening Public Trust in Government Through Technology and Innovation.” He highlighted how secure data sovereignty and localized cloud infrastructure empower agencies to protect citizen data while maintaining the transparency needed to build lasting public confidence. 🇵🇭 Ready to Build the Future? As the Philippines' top Google Cloud Premier Partner, MaroonStudios has already empowered more than 70 government agencies with our award-winning team of cloud professionals. Armed with open procurement pathways and sovereign local infrastructure, we are ready to guide the next generation of AI-ready Philippine governance.