By Edd K. Usman
Technology gurus from the United States, Singapore, and other countries ? including a Filipino-American based in San Francisco ? will gather in Palawan to help inspire startups and small businesses.
Held at the Princesa Garden Island Resort and Spa Hotel in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan from August 24 to 25, the fifth edition of Geeks on a Beach (GOAB) will feature the IT industry?s brightest minds.
They include Chris McCann of Greylock Partners; Kay-Mok Ku of Gobi Ventures; Manny Ayala of Endeavor; Aldo Carrascoso of GylcoProX Biosciences; Prasad Vanga of Anthill Ventures; Robertson Chiang of Dragonpay Corporation; Miguel Perez of Ayannah; Jason Torres of Ticketbase.com; and Chris Tran of North Ridge Partners.
Also in attendance will be Filipino-American Yobie Benjamin of Token.io and ClickSWITCH.com, according to GOAB organizer TechTalks.PH.
Besides helping inspire micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs),this year?s GOAB has also invited companies and businesses, especially those wishing to jumpstart their digital transformation.
?Our bigger goal is to bring the right minds together to connect and initiate value-centric conversations,? said Robert Cristobal, TechTalks.ph chief content officer and Singapore-based Frame316.com founder.
?This is for businesses that want to incorporate automated processes and tools, use software to reach out to new customers and expand profits, harness the power of social media and digital marketing techniques to increase revenue and boost their branding, and partner with experienced and trusted digital experts,? said Tina Amper of TechTalks.PH.
Co-organizing the event is the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), which has long been a supporter.
Meanwhile, AirAsia Philippines, the event?s official airline partner, has been a sponsor for the third straight year.
?AirAsia is supporting GOAB as part of our efforts to support promising startups and grow the tech scene in the Philippines,? said AirAsia Philippines CEO Dexter Comendador.
The airline has given ?startups, creatives, and tech entrepreneurs a global stage for new learning and opportunities for meeting potential partners,? said Amper.
Other GOAB supporters are PLDT, Smart, Voyager, PayMaya, ePLDT, Smart DevNet, PLDT Enterprise, and PLDT Innolab, and Ideaspace as co-presenters. ASPACE Philippines is co-producer. Fintech firm Payoneer Philippines has also given support for GOAB for the second year this year.
?We are in Geeks on a Beach to talk about the huge potential of e-commerce, freelancing, and outsourcing in the Philippines; and how Payoneer can help these fields with their online and cross-border payments,? Payoneer Philippines country manager Miguel Warren said.
This year’s GOAB is held in partnership with the City Government of Puerto Princesa, Palawe?o ICT Association, and Department of Science and Technology-Philippine Council for Industry, Energy and Emerging Technology Research and Development (DOST-PCIEERD).
As it is being held in Palawan and under the ?tech for good? mindset, GOAB will highlight creative ways to address environmental issues and find ways to solve them.
