Philippines among top 3 nations in AI Olympiad

The Philippines placed among the top three national delegations at the recent 2026 Northern Eurasia Olympiad in Artificial Intelligence (NEOAI), marking a major international showing for the country’s young artificial intelligence talent.

The Philippine delegation was selected through the International Olympiad in Artificial Intelligence Philippines (IOAIPH), hosted by the Ateneo de Manila University Business Insights Laboratory for Development (BUILD) of the John Gokongwei School of Management.

The Philippine team competed against 224 young computer scientists from national delegations and independent competitors from major technology education hubs, including Russia, Romania, Iran, Malaysia, Serbia, Cyprus, and Mongolia.

All 12 members of the Philippine delegation earned official international certificates from Central University and the AI Alliance Russia after completing the rigorous two-day competition hosted by Central University and SberUniversity. The contest tested participants in advanced artificial intelligence engineering tasks, including machine learning, computer vision, and audio processing.

Leading the Philippine team was Juan Mateo J. Desuasido of Brent International School Manila, who placed 17th globally with 365.79 points. His performance put him in the equivalent gold tier and made him the highest-ranking competitor from outside the Russian and Romanian delegations.

Daphne Eunice U. Acena of De La Salle University–Dasmariñas High School and Theo Lorenzo T. Bustamante of Philippine Science High School–Calabarzon Region Campus placed in the equivalent silver tier, ranking 51st and 56th globally, respectively.

Five other Filipino students finished within the equivalent bronze tier: Ryan James L. Alfaro of Philippine Science High School–Calabarzon Region Campus, Conrad Jeffrey C. Tan of Grace Christian College, Troy Dylan T. Serapio of Philippine Science High School–Main Campus, Tristan Japheth L. Marquez of Philippine Science High School–Central Luzon Campus, and Aretha Cai Faustine M. Sy of St. Scholastica’s Academy of Marikina.

Ellison Matthew S. Ang of Philippine Science High School–Main Campus also earned an equivalent honorable mention, highlighted by a strong Day 2 performance that placed him 110th globally for that competition block.

Completing the national delegation were Almond Rose M. Obedoza of Stanford Online High School, Jhareign S. Solidum of University of Mindanao Ilang High School, and Noe Nathan Y. Arreza of Philippine Science High School–Calabarzon Region Campus, all of whom earned official certification.

Based on the average score of each nation’s top three competitors, the Philippines ranked third among national delegations, behind only Russia and Romania. Eight members of the Philippine team also placed in the global top 100 and achieved a 100% certification rate.

The team’s preparation and participation were supported by sponsors including Joy Nostalg, Times Paint, and the Tiu family, with support from community partners such as the Analytics and AI Association of the Philippines.

The results signal a strong emerging foothold for the Philippines in international AI education, underscoring the depth of the country’s young talent in artificial intelligence, data science, and mathematical computing.