The Philippine delegation delivered impressive performance during its participation in the International Olympiad in Artificial Intelligence (IOAI). Held last August in Astana, Kazakhstan, the competition saw the four-member Filipino team secure medals in every category, bringing home one silver and three bronze awards. They competed against a massive field of 466 high school students representing 108 different countries and territories.
The silver medal was earned by Theo Lorenzo T. Bustamante from the Philippine Science High School–CALABARZON Region Campus, who managed to rank 80th overall. The bronze medals were claimed by three other students: Ellison Matthew S. Ang of Philippine Science High School–Main Campus, Jhareign S. Solidum of University of Mindanao Ilang High School), and Juan Mateo J. Desuasido of Brent International School Manila. This result placed the Philippines among a select group of nations that successfully secured silver medals during their first IOAI appearance.
To succeed in the tournament, students had to demonstrate expertise in complex fields such as computer vision, natural language processing, and machine learning. The preparation for this global event involved ten months of rigorous training organized by IOAI PH and hosted by Ateneo de Manila University’s BUILD. This training included expert-led bootcamps and access to specialized technical infrastructure to help the students master advanced AI concepts.
The journey to Kazakhstan was made possible through government and private support. While the IOAI Board handled registration and travel costs, local agencies including the Department of Education and the DOST–Science Education Institute also provided assistance. Following this successful debut, the international community looks forward to the next competition, which is set to take place in Singapore in 2027.