Makati City–Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ramon Lopez spoke at the Press Conference for the Augmented Intelligence and Socially Responsible BPO together with the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) Acting Secretary Eliseo M. Rio Jr., Mr. Dado Banatao, and Mr. George Yang on 23 May 2018.

 

The objective of this collaboration is to train Filipinos in using Augmented Intelligence (AI2) as a solution to the impending threat of artificial intelligence on the jobs in the Information Technology – Business Process Outsourcing (IT-BPO) industry, while encouraging investors and operators to create more Socially Responsible Business Process Outsourcing (SRBPO) in the countryside.

 

Augmented Intelligence will combine the power of artificial intelligence with human intelligence to upskill the Filipino workforce and make them more effective and productive by enabling them to do complex and higher-paying tasks. This initiative, summed up under the “Philippine AI Workforce” brand campaign, will provide more jobs to Filipinos and bring the development to rural communities.

 

The Philippines is the first country to launch this kind of initiative. Instead of looking at AI as a threat to the BPO industry, the Duterte administration is using AI2 to provide more opportunities for inclusive growth.

 

Secretary Lopez highlights the inclusion of IT-BPM in the top industry priorities to drive the country’s growth and development under the Inclusive Innovation Industrial Strategy (i3S).

 

Meanwhile, DICT will supply a fast and inexpensive internet connection for the BPO operators located in the countryside. DICT’s 4,000 Tech4Ed centers nationwide will also be utilized to assist recruitment and AI training.♦