Lenovo treats Phl as top Southeast Asian market

Even if neighboring countries in the Southeast Asian region are advantageous in terms of being technology savvy, the Philippines remains an integral market according to an official of Lenovo, a Chinese multinational technology company specializing in designing, manufacturing, and marketing consumer electronics, personal computers, software, business solutions, and related services.

"We see strong demand for the Philippines, the only question is how the consumers get the technology. The pandemic has even made the demand for the Philippines surge because of the digital transformation, unlike pre-pandemic where everyone is scrambling. Right now, because of the transformation, growth is very evident. In other words, investments, including Lenovo technologies are still in demand in the market," according to Giancarlo Nogales from the Infrastructure Solutions Services Sales of Lenovo Philippines at the sidelines of the VST ECS CXO Tech Summit at the Dusit Thani in Mactan Cebu.

"In terms of devices, the Philippines is actually doing well," he added.

Last August, the company said that over the next three years, Lenovo is committing a further $1 billion in investment for artificial intelligence that will focus on providing AI devices, AI-ready, and AI-optimized computing infrastructure, and embedded AI-generated content into the intelligent solutions of vertical industries to help customers improve their productivity.

Lenovo in September 2023 has unveiled new cutting-edge tech tools and essentials tailored to empower the dynamic, evolving needs of today's business end-users.

It said that the new monitor, software, and accessories are not only designed to boost the capabilities of today's remote and hybrid workforces but also to address significant challenges faced by businesses as they digitize operations across departments.

"Lenovo research shows that managing a remote workforce and global teams remain central tasks for CIOs.1. That is why the new offerings integrate impressive processing power, immersive 3D, and advanced security to create a unified, human-centered experience," the company said.

Further, Nogales added that sales for Lenovo in the Philippines will continue to soar as the country has a bigger population which connotes demand compared to other nations in SE Asia.

What Lenovo can count on with the Philippines is the demand for laptops and tablets that are now being used by students, educators, workers, and even the government.

"Actually, we have an ongoing engagement with the government sector. I was at an event with the DICT (Department of Information and Communications) and we had discussions with the Department of Education as well, but we still understand what they are looking for. Of course, with DepEd, it's a big agency, and what I can say is we are working with them across whatever we can offer—cloud technologies, among others," he told the DAILY TRIBUNE.

Nogales said he sees an ongoing digital transformation within organizations and will continue over the coming years.

Digital transformation is an ongoing journey

Meanwhile, VST ECS president and CEO Jimmy Go stressed that in the ever-evolving world of technology, organizations are charting a course – through a landscape that has seen profound advancement in recent years.

"It's important to understand that digital transformation is not a one-time event but an ongoing journey. Every day, we bear witness to the unveiling of new digital technologies. In this dynamic environment, the lines between the physical and digital worlds are blurring, creating a phenomenon known as phygital convergence," he said.

He said organizations nowadays stand at the threshold of a remarkable technological revolution.

"Generative AI is the talk of the town with Chat GPT and other AI, offering organizations the power to intelligently automate customer experiences and streamline internal operations. The implications of this technology are far-reaching. Microsoft is launching CoPilot and most software applications are incorporating AI in their applications. Gartner predicts that by 2030, a staggering 80 percent of people will interact with smart robots daily, and in just two years, these smart robots will become workforce partners for 90 percent of global companies," he said.

Further, Go stressed that AI and machine learning, once a novel concept, have become integral to the products and services offered by major companies.

"A mere decade ago, we were learning to communicate with machines. Today, machines understand and adapt to our language, erasing the boundaries between humans and technology. While AI is currently the headline in the tech world, we must not lose sight of the critical need to modernize our IT infrastructure," he stated.

For organizations to embrace technology, he said it's a pivotal step in allowing organizations to embrace the latest technology trends, including Multi Clouds, Quantum computing, Data explosion, RPA, Generative AI, and more.

"Investments in Connectivity solutions, Digital Infrastructure, Cloud technologies, Cybersecurity, Big data, Storage, Automation, and Collaboration tools remain vital to prepare for the ever-evolving Tech landscape. In the Israel-Hamas and Ukraine-Russia wars, Technology plays a very important and critical role in their war strategies. Computers, AI, Starlink, and drones are heavily used in their strategies," he said.