MANILA: The Philippine government on Tuesday (Sept 8) launched the final draft of the Philippines AI+ Infrastructure Masterplan (PAIIM) 2026-2033, a US$34.4 billion roadmap that seeks to position the country as a regional hub for artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure, the Philippine News Agency (PNA) reported.
While the PAIIM was first introduced earlier this year, Tuesday's event marked the release of its finalised version, laying out the government's full strategy for AI infrastructure development through 2033.
Department of Information and Communications Technology’s National ICT Planning, Policy and Standards Bureau Officer-in-Charge Director Gemma Baysic said the Philippines aims to be more than a consumer of AI technology.
"(The Philippines aims) to build, host, power, and support the AI ecosystem of the future," Baysic said.
Under the masterplan, the country's AI data centre capacity is set to expand 30-fold, from a baseline of 50 megawatts (MW) to 1.5 gigawatts (GW) by 2033, with an initial deployment of roughly 400 MW to be completed by 2030 under the plan's first phase.
Department of Energy (DOE) Undersecretary Maria Francesca Del Rosario said the country is expected to power around 152,000 graphics processing units (GPUs) for its planned AI industry, using the figure as a proxy for estimating computing capacity and power demand.
Del Rosario noted that the DOE will be responsible for producing this additional power without pulling electricity away from Filipino households.
She added that immediate power needs will be met using natural gas plants, with a target of sourcing 40 per cent of total power for AI infrastructure from renewable sources such as solar and geothermal by 2033.
The DOE will also explore nuclear power as a long-term option under Republic Act 12305, or the Philippine National Nuclear Energy Safety Act (PhilAtom Act).
Baysic said the Philippines already has a strong AI policy foundation, placing it second among Asean countries in an AI benchmark, on par with Singapore and just behind Thailand.
She explained that the development of AI infrastructure will be paired with six mutually supporting pillars: connectivity infrastructure; AI compute and data centres; sustainable energy and water sourcing; AI workforce development; policy and regulation; and demand creation and adoption.
By 2033, the masterplan projects the initiative will generate more than 500,000 AI-related jobs and an additional 175,000 jobs from AI infrastructure projects, while raising national GDP by 10 to 12 per cent through AI-driven productivity gains and new digital services. - Bernama-PNA
