Jollibee Philippines emerged as Advertiser of the Year at the SMARTIES Philippines 2026 Awards, taking home 10 honors for campaigns that combine artificial intelligence (AI), data analytics and creativity to drive consumer engagement and business impact.

The National Water Resources Board (NWRB) confirmed Metro Manila’s water supply remains enough for now, but called on the public to practice proper usage as the country braces for a strong El Niño event.

Aurora Pacific Economic Zone and Freeport Authority (APECO) chief executive Gil G. Taway IV has secured another three-year term, with the agency under pressure to turn its P30-billion investment pipeline into operating projects, new jobs and infrastructure in Aurora province.

Students at Piminggan Elementary School in Tuba, Benguet now experience lessons far beyond textbooks and blackboards, following the installation of reliable solar power that has opened digital learning opportunities in their remote mountain community.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) has scheduled a public scoping hearing on November 9, 2026, for DMCI Power Corporation’s proposed 15-megawatt coal-biomass power plant in Narra, Palawan, valued at P3 billion.

Philex Mining Corp. and its rank-and-file workers’ union have reached a settlement to end a labor dispute, paving the way for a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) that covers a period thorough 2030.

Rockport Power Inc. has renewed its Retail Electricity Supplier (RES) License, ensuring it can continue delivering competitive, reliable, customer-focused energy solutions to Philippine businesses.

First Gen Group has completed and officially switched on a rooftop solar installation at NKC Manufacturing Philippines Corporation—Cebu-based subsidiary of Japan’s NKC Group—just four months after signing the deal, in a bid to secure reliable power amid Visayas supply challenges.

Ayala Land Inc.’s P15-billion investment in mall upgrades, alongside a broader push to refresh its hospitality portfolio, is beginning to deliver stronger returns as the property developer adapts to changing consumer behavior in the post-pandemic market.

Filinvest Cyberparks Inc. (FCI), the office leasing arm of Filinvest Land Inc. (FLI), has renewed and expanded its long-standing partnership with global IT-BPM firm Infosys BPM, marking over 12 years of collaboration.

Colliers Philippines is urging the government to raise the value-added tax (VAT) exemption ceiling for residential properties, arguing that targeted tax relief could improve affordability and help absorb Metro Manila’s growing inventory of unsold condominiums.

Rockwell Land Corp. has joined the government’s Expanded Pambansang Pabahay para sa Pilipino (4PH) Program, agreeing to offer preferential housing prices and incentives to qualified Pag-IBIG Fund members as the administration seeks to widen access to homeownership among working- and middle-class Filipinos.

Smart Communications has achieved a perfect zero percent call drop rate in the National Telecommunications Commission’s most recent service quality tests across Metro Manila, marking a major milestone in reliable voice service for subscribers. The result easily clears the regulator’s required standard of less than 2 percent call drop ratio, meaning calls connect and stay connected consistently for users. For customers, this translates to clearer, uninterrupted conversations whether for personal calls, work updates, or emergency communications—no more frustrating cut-offs that waste time and cause inconvenience.

Globe led the National Telecommunications Commission’s latest service quality tests, recording the highest SMS success rate at 99.41 percent — the only provider to pass the NTC’s 99 percent standard. Its call drop ratio hit just 0.74 percent, well below the 2 percent limit, while peak download speed reached 381 Mbps.

The PLDT Group is calling for deeper partnership between the government and private sector to make the country’s subsea cable network stronger and more reliable.

Lenovo is bringing its flagship Tech World event back to the Consumer Electronics Show or CES 2027, hosting the January 6 keynote at Sphere to unveil innovations centered on its Hybrid AI vision: combining human and artificial intelligence to create real value. Open to credentialed guests and streamed globally, the gathering will feature top industry leaders exploring how AI serves people, business and society.

Filipinos have a curious relationship with the medal table. We like to see our flag climbing it, preferably past countries with larger populations, bigger budgets, and considerably more athletes. We count golds, compare totals, calculate rankings, and wonder whether we could have done better. A silver medal is celebrated, of course, but not before someone observes that it could have been a gold.

Forensic accounting is where spreadsheets lose their innocence, receipts acquire personalities, and money is asked to explain where it has been hiding.

Where I live, Thursday mornings are dedicated to the ritualistic pilgrimage to the local talipapa, a humble expedition to secure a week’s worth of sustenance for the household. Our modest needs are dictated less by appetite and more by the pragmatic demands of advancing age. Reaching for a favorite, I inquired about the price of a kilo of pompano—a fish that, not so long ago, went for a respectable ₱440.

Cars have become remarkably good at worrying about us. They can warn when we are drifting out of a lane, tell us when another vehicle has entered our blind spot, apply the brakes when we fail to notice something ahead, and, in some cases, even keep themselves pointed in the right direction while traffic crawls along. It is an extraordinary development, particularly in a country where driving is akin to participating in a live-action negotiation with several hundred strangers. The problem is that the smarter the car becomes, the greater the temptation for us to become slightly less smart ourselves.