Geeks on a Beach 2025: From AI Hype to Hands-On Impact

Wazzup Pilipinas!? 

Get ready for an electrifying confluence of technology and paradise, as Geeks on a Beach (GOAB) 2025 is set to transform the shores of Mactan, Cebu, into a hub of AI-driven innovation. This year, the Philippines' premier international tech and startup conference is tackling the future head-on, introducing new Artificial Intelligence (AI) tracks designed to propel businesses and tech teams from conceptual hype to tangible, real-world application.

A New Era of AI-Powered Growth

Mark your calendars for 

October 1–3, 2025, at the beautiful JPark Island Resort. GOAB 2025 isn't just another conference; it's a launchpad for actionable strategies aimed at leveraging AI to ignite growth, supercharge efficiency, and spark innovation. Tina Amper, the lead organizer of GOAB, emphasizes the urgency of this transition, noting that while "every company is turning into an AI company," many are grappling with where to start. GOAB's new tracks are crafted to be that definitive roadmap, empowering founders, executives, and tech teams to use AI to enhance operations, boost revenue, and upskill their workforce.

AI Masterclasses: Deep Dives for Every Team

The three-day event kicks off on 

October 1 with a series of masterclasses built for deep, practical learning. Two distinct tracks will run simultaneously, each meticulously tailored to the needs of a different audience:

For Tech & IT Professionals: This track offers hands-on sessions. Attendees will learn to develop AI solutions using Gemini and Google Cloud with Cleo Credo from Full Scale. Carl Angelo Orale of Ticketnation will lead a session on creating practical AI playbooks for achieving tangible business results , while Raven Duran from Symph.co will guide participants on implementing real-world strategies for AI-augmented software development.

For Business, Marketing & Startup Teams: This track focuses on strategic thought leadership. Industry leaders like Mohan Belani (e27 Singapore), Eli Harrell and Gladys Palarca (Emerge.ph), and Robert Cristobal (NxtStory Studios) will share their expertise. They'll cover how organizations can strategically position themselves, use AI for powerful branding and communication, and lead high-performing teams in a rapidly evolving digital landscape.

Zero to Strategy: Your AI Roadmap

On October 2, a pivotal moment arrives with a hands-on workshop led by seasoned AI technology leader Tim Santos. With over 16 years of experience in AI, MLOps, and data science, Santos has a proven track record of bridging the gap between cutting-edge research and real-world enterprise adoption.

His workshop, aptly titled "Zero to Strategy: Building Your AI Roadmap," is designed to help decision-makers and innovators identify critical opportunities within their own organizations. Participants will be guided through a transformative process: turning broad, ambitious ideas into concrete, actionable use cases. You'll leave with a personalized AI roadmap for the next 30, 60, and 90 days. Santos will also provide a data-driven perspective on AI adoption in the Philippines, sharing insights from the Philippine AI Report Survey and highlighting key areas ripe with opportunity.

With its blend of practical learning and strategic insights, GOAB 2025 promises to arm every attendee with the tools and strategies necessary to not just navigate, but to lead the charge in the AI revolution.

Ready to harness the future? Join the movement and secure your spot at this game-changing event. For tickets and more information, visit geeksonabeach.com.

Toxic Deception: EcoWaste Coalition Exposes Hazardous Lead Paints Masquerading as “Safe”

Wazzup Pilipinas!? 

Quezon City, Philippines — September 9, 2025.

What happens when a toxic poison hides behind a false promise of safety? The!? EcoWaste Coalition has once again sounded the alarm after uncovering another brand of imported spray paint flooding the Philippine market—boldly mislabeled as “lead-free” but in truth, dangerously laced with lead levels thousands of times above the legal limit.

The culprit: Easyman Spray Paint All Purpose Enamel.

Sold for as little as ₱99 in stores across Bulacan and Quezon City, this brightly packaged paint claims to be safe, non-toxic, and “no Pb”—a direct reference to the absence of lead. But scientific analysis tells a chillingly different story.

A Toxic Reality Behind the Label

Using an Olympus Vanta M Series X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) analyzer, EcoWaste screened multiple Easyman paint variants. The findings were staggering:

Yellow: over 100,000 ppm of lead

Orange: 84,900 ppm

Green: 65,600 ppm

Signal Red: 1,577 ppm

Blue: 866 ppm

Silver Red: 446 ppm

To put this in perspective, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has set the maximum allowable lead content in paints at 90 ppm under Administrative Order 2013-24. These paints exceeded that by astronomical margins, making them not only unsafe but outright poisonous.

And yet, Easyman’s cans flaunt multilingual instructions declaring the product “non-toxic” and “lead-free.” No manufacturer or distributor information is provided, leaving consumers in the dark about who is responsible for unleashing these toxic goods into Philippine households and communities.

A Betrayal of Consumer Rights

EcoWaste did not mince words, branding the sale and distribution of Easyman paints as “deceptive, unfair, and unconscionable.” Such mislabeling directly violates Republic Act 7394, the Consumer Act of the Philippines, which enshrines the right of consumers to truthful information and protection against unsafe products.

“The importation, distribution and sale of lead-containing Easyman Spray Paints violate DENR A.O. 2013-24 banning lead use in paints,” the group emphasized. “Consumers have the right to be protected against fraudulent claims and unsafe products, as well as the right to be provided with facts needed to make an informed choice.”

A Pattern of Toxic Dumping

Sadly, this is not an isolated case. Since 2020, EcoWaste has repeatedly unearthed paint brands marketed as “lead-free” but later exposed as toxic offenders. Among them: Easyman, Korona, Sinag, Standard JR, and Tiger.

Despite the Philippines ratifying the Rotterdam Convention in 2006—an international treaty designed to regulate hazardous chemicals—the illegal importation of toxic paints continues unabated. This loophole allows unscrupulous manufacturers and distributors to profit at the expense of public health, particularly endangering children, whose developing brains are most vulnerable to lead poisoning.

The Hidden Cost of Lead

Lead is not just another chemical—it is a potent neurotoxin. Even small exposures can cause irreversible brain damage, lowered IQ, learning difficulties, behavioral problems, and in severe cases, organ failure. Children are disproportionately at risk, often exposed when they touch or inhale dust from lead-painted surfaces.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has repeatedly warned: “There is no safe level of lead exposure.”

Toward Global Accountability

Together with the International Pollutants Elimination Network (IPEN), EcoWaste is calling for stricter global enforcement. They are lobbying for the inclusion of lead chromates—a common lead pigment—into the Rotterdam Convention’s Annex III, subjecting them to the treaty’s Prior Informed Consent (PIC) procedure.

This means countries like the Philippines would have the power to reject toxic shipments before they even dock at local ports. Encouragingly, nations such as Cameroon, Morocco, and Switzerland have already nominated lead chromates for inclusion. The Philippines, EcoWaste insists, must follow suit with urgency.

The Fight for a Lead-Free Future

EcoWaste’s relentless investigations serve as both a warning and a call to action. Unless authorities tighten enforcement at customs and crack down on illicit distributors, hazardous paints will continue to slip through the cracks—masquerading as safe, affordable products, while poisoning Filipino homes, schools, and workplaces.

The discovery of Easyman Spray Paint is more than a scandal. It is a stark reminder that when public health is at stake, complacency is complicity.

Will we allow toxic lies to repaint our nation—or will we demand accountability, enforcement, and a truly lead-free future?

The answer, quite literally, could shape the health of generations.

Nuclear Power in the Philippines: A Ticking Time Bomb or the Nation’s Brightest Hope?

Wazzup Pilipinas!? 

When it comes to the Philippines’ unending struggle for affordable, sustainable, and reliable electricity, the debate over nuclear power is no longer confined to the academic or speculative. It has become real, imminent, and pressing. The government, through the Department of Energy (DOE), has already unveiled its nuclear energy road map at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) General Conference in Vienna in 2024. The bold plan? To bring the country’s first nuclear power plant online by 2032, beginning with 1,200 megawatts (MW) and scaling up to 4,800 MW by 2050.

The numbers are striking, but so are the questions. Will nuclear power become the Philippines’ salvation from high energy costs, or is it merely a gamble with consequences too catastrophic to bear?

A Road Already Chosen

Unlike past decades where nuclear debates were hypothetical, the Philippines has crossed the threshold. Secretary Sharon Garin made it clear: nuclear energy is officially part of the country’s future. Legislative support is moving in tandem. The Philippine National Nuclear Energy Safety Act, ratified by Congress in June 2025, created the Philippine Atomic Energy Regulatory Authority (PhilATOM) — an agency tasked to enforce international safety standards and ensure nuclear energy’s “peaceful” use.

In a country where brownouts, red alerts, and skyrocketing electricity bills are common frustrations, the promise of nuclear energy resonates. PNRI Director Carlo Arcilla bluntly noted that today’s power costs are crushing consumers. His colleague, Deputy Director Dr. Valerrie Ann Samson, emphasized that nuclear power is far more efficient and cleaner than coal, and theoretically much cheaper.

Yet, theory and reality don’t always align in Philippine governance.

Ghosts of the Past: Fukushima, Chernobyl, and Bataan

No conversation on nuclear energy escapes the shadow of past disasters. Fukushima, Chernobyl, and Three Mile Island stand as grim reminders that when nuclear power goes wrong, it doesn’t just fail — it devastates. Add to that the Philippines’ own painful history: the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP), mothballed for decades after a combination of corruption, safety concerns, and political upheaval.

Now, with new commitments and renewed political will, the specter of BNPP hangs over every new nuclear proposal. Will the nation’s leaders ensure that history does not repeat itself?

Consumers Left in the Dark

The government’s nuclear agenda is being advanced at breakneck speed. The Nuclear Energy Plan Inter-Agency Committee (NEP-IAC), composed of 24 agencies and six subcommittees, is methodically tackling every dimension of the nuclear question — from safety and regulation to human resources and radioactive waste management.

But glaringly absent in the process is the consumer voice.

For the 28% of electricity users who are residential consumers, the stakes are enormous. They are the ones paying the highest rates in Asia. They are the ones suffering from service interruptions. And yet, where are they in the policymaking process? Energy cannot just be a technocratic project. It is a human right.

Fortunately, there are glimmers of recognition. Congressman Mark Cojuangco, chair of the House Committee on Nuclear Energy, has opened the door for consumer advocates like Kuryente.org to be included in future hearings and discussions. For groups like Kuryente.org, led by Bas Umali, the demand is simple: transparency, accountability, and clear proof that nuclear energy will truly lower electricity bills.

The Unanswered Questions

The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC), during its Information, Education, and Communication Campaign in March, was asked directly: If nuclear energy enters the retail market, how will regulators ensure that prices are fair for consumers?

The answer? Silence.

This silence is more dangerous than any reactor core. Because without concrete guarantees of affordability, nuclear power may simply become another expensive experiment, enriching a few while leaving millions still shackled by high electricity costs.

Threat or Opportunity?

Nuclear energy is neither inherently evil nor inherently good. It is a double-edged sword. Managed well, it could provide the Philippines with cleaner, more reliable, and more affordable energy than coal, gas, or oil ever could. Mismanaged, it could unleash financial ruin, environmental disaster, or worse, a catastrophe no nation can fully recover from.

What matters now is not whether we are pro- or anti-nuclear. That question is already behind us. The real challenge lies in ensuring that the nuclear path chosen by our government does not trample on the rights of its citizens.

Will nuclear power finally end the cycle of brownouts and high bills, or will it be another monument to failed promises? The answer depends not just on scientists and lawmakers, but on whether ordinary consumers are given a seat at the table — where their voices, their welfare, and their future truly matter.

Until then, the question remains: nuclear power, threat or opportunity?

For inquiries: kuryente.org@gmail.com

Kuryente.org is a consumer welfare organization that pursues transparency and good governance in the energy sector. Its mission is to safeguard the Filipino people’s right to sustainable, accessible, reliable, and affordable energy.