Artificial intelligence (AI) presents diverse opportunities for the Philippines, whose government has ramped up the technology’s adoption through its National AI Strategy (NAIS Ph)—a move intended not only to help transform critical sectors but also to level the nation with upper-middle-income economies in terms of tech development.
Reigning in the AI race isn’t solely about the pace of the integration but also about developing resilient and scalable data systems, which the World Bank said remain fragmented in the Philippines. The financial institution warned in a recent policy note that delaying investments in data infrastructure and governance could put a dent in the government’s AI ambitions.
Fueling the AI boom
In its “From Fragmentation to Flow: Reforms Promoting Trusted Data Sharing for Responsible AI in the Philippines” policy note, the World Bank pointed out the country’s weak and disconnected data systems as hurdles in unlocking AI’s full economic potential, stressing that data being fed into the technology is what allows it to function properly.
With data spread across different organizations, databases, systems, and platforms in the Philippines, the bank explained that it makes it harder for them to be collected, stored, shared, protected, and managed properly, thereby degrading AI’s functional abilities. This reason alone is what prompted the World Bank to call out the Philippine government to start reinforcing the country’s data infrastructure.
“Policymakers are racing to regulate AI outputs and outcomes but underinvesting in data availability, quality, and governance. Regulating AI without addressing data is like regulating vehicles without roads or fuel standards, as data ultimately shape AI performance, fairness, and accountability,” the bank said, as quoted by Manila Bulletin in its August 24 report.
The Philippines previously estimated AI to contribute up to PHP2.8 trillion ($50.7 billion) to its gross domestic product (GDP) by 2030, and while it has only been in 2021 that the government began broadly integrating AI through the establishment of National Artificial Intelligence Strategy Roadmap (NAISR 1.0), this calculation is not far from being realized, as proven by studies compiled by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
The catch, however, is that this is highly achievable if only the Philippines manages to fix its siloed data ecosystem.
According to studies analyzed by the OECD, better data sharing in the public sector alone could create economic value equivalent to 0.1% to 1.5% of nominal GDP. Experts argued that this economic value could reach 1% to 2.5% if private sector data are included.
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The three-pronged problem
While it is easy to recommend unifying the Philippines data architecture, the issue of fragmentation, which the World Bank described as “severe,” runs deeper, raising questions about whether the country is truly prepared for wider AI adoption.
The World Bank said fragmentation in the Southeast Asian state happens at three levels—infrastructure, policy frameworks, and institutional arrangements. It went on to identify three specific areas where the Philippines is falling behind, namely broadband connectivity, data center capacity, and cloud computing.
In its August 2025 Global Speed Index, Ookla ranked the Philippines 54th in fixed broadband speed, with an average of 105.17 Mbps. While this is steady progress for the country, associate professor at the University of the Philippines, Dr. Alicor Panao, told local media that this isn’t as good as its neighboring peers. Although the result showcases the Philippines’ improving internet connectivity, it also highlights the need to keep investing in digital public infrastructure (DPI), which remains at an early stage.
And with transactions and communications becoming largely digital, the World Bank noted cybersecurity as another area that the government needs to strengthen. This is evident in the institution’s Business Ready (B-READY) project in 2024, which evaluates business environments, with the Philippines scoring 4.86 in cybersecurity and online safety—performing worse than its fellow Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member states.
These weaknesses, if left unresolved, could create bigger problems for the Philippines. The World Bank reiterated that AI can be a significant tool to boost the country’s economic performance, but only if the data is good.
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From fragmented data to smarter AI
The responsible use of AI has been a topic of debate since controversies surrounding its applications came to light, prompting global economies to rush in regulating the sector and even Pope Leo XIV calling for a disarmament of the technology through his first encyclical, the Magnifica humanitas.
But the risks don’t end with how AI is used; they also lie in the data behind it, according to the World Bank’s policy note.
With fragmented data threatening to limit AI’s benefits, the World Bank urges the Philippine administration, with support from state-backed agencies and local government units (LGUs), to create a strategy and allocate funding that will reinforce the country’s data foundations, establish clear policies for secure and trusted data sharing, and define responsibilities for implementation across government.
Additionally, authorities are being called to start collecting better statistics on data and AI to allow the government to accurately measure how much data are actually being used by businesses and organizations, as well as how much economic value they create.
With AI being adopted in local industries nowadays, the challenge is no longer whether the Philippines can integrate the technology, but whether it can build a data infrastructure that would allow AI to deliver real benefits to communities.
In order for artificial intelligence (AI) to work right within the law and thrive in the face of growing challenges, it needs to integrate an enterprise blockchain system that ensures data input quality and ownership—allowing it to keep data safe while also guaranteeing the immutability of data. Check out CoinGeek’s coverage on this emerging tech to learn more why Enterprise blockchain will be the backbone of AI.
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