DOST Hosts ASTICON: From Tech Pilots to National Capabilities

From the DOST public archive. Original source publication date: 2026-06-19. Captured 2026-09-04. Read the original DOST source.

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ASTICON 2026 brings multisectoral representatives and international experts to discuss how local innovations remain in the game. (Photo courtesy of DOST-STII)

QUEZON CITY — The Department of Science and Technology – Advanced Science and Technology Institute (DOST-ASTI) will host the third Advanced Science, Technology, and Innovation Convention (ASTICON) 2026 on June 23, 2026, at Lanson Place, Mall of Asia, Pasay City. This event aims to bring together representatives from the public sector, industry leaders, academic institutions, and international partners to discuss how the country's technology sector can ensure that promising innovations remain relevant in the market.

In its third year, ASTICON shifts from showcasing individual technologies to building the national capabilities— the infrastructure, talent, governance, and partnerships behind the demo. This year's theme, "Preparing Tomorrow, Today: Building Real National Capabilities," frames it as a continuous process of sustaining and scaling science and technology products.

In truth, there is no shortage of product pilots and prototypes. However, there are far fewer products that survive the jump from project to commercialized services. ASTICON 2026 is built around closing that gap — moving the conversation from "what we can build" to "what we can keep, scale, and govern."

"For two years, ASTICON showed what our technologies can do. This year, we are asking the harder question — how do we make these capabilities last?" explained Dr. Franz A. De Leon, Director of DOST-ASTI.

"National capability is not built by any single institution or any single tool. It is built when infrastructure, talent, and governance come together, and when partners stay in the room long after the demo ends."

The morning plenary opens with a national direction from DOST Secretary Renato U. Solidum, Jr., followed by a global perspective on scaling digital systems from international development partners, including the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Korea Institute of Science and Technology Information (KISTI). The session draws lessons from how other countries have carried S&T systems from pilot to policy.

Two afternoon thematic forums anchor the program around national priorities, from digital transformation to data-driven governance. The first, "Building the National AI Backbone: Infrastructure, Talent, and Governance," spotlights the National AI Center for Research and Innovation (NAICRI) — the initiative consolidating the country's AI investments to support coordinated rollout of the National AI Strategy — and brings together national leaders, regional directors, academe, and industry on how AI capability is built and localized for sector and regional needs. The second, "Integrating Data for Smarter Governance: From Systems to Decision-Making," features the Geospatial Analytics and Technology Solutions (GATES) program, which combines geospatial data, analytics, and artificial intelligence to support evidence-informed decisions in government, and explores pathways for system integration and broader public-sector adoption.

Running alongside the talks, a curated technology exhibit will let participants see DOST-ASTI's tools in action and trace how each one supports public-sector innovation and national development.

ASTICON 2026 is expected to convene representatives from national government agencies, local government units, industry partners, academic and research institutions, and international development organizations — the mix of actors whose sustained collaboration the convention argues is the real engine of national capability.

Through ASTICON 2026, DOST-ASTI aims to deepen cross-sector collaboration and advance a practical agenda for how science and technology drive national development — built to last beyond the event itself.

The Advanced Science and Technology Institute is one of the attached agencies of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) aimed at providing science-based, innovative, and inclusive solutions across four strategic pillars: human well-being, wealth creation, wealth protection, and sustainability. These pillars embody the mantra OneDOST4U: Solutions and Opportunities for All. (By Murvi Cua & Kurt Valcorza, DOST-ASTI)

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