Startups took center stage at the Manila Angel Investors Network’s (MAIN) fourth quarter pitch night on Tuesday at KMC One Ayala.

Victor “Viboy” S. Genuino, president and CEO of ePLDT and VITRO Inc., delivered the keynote address, focusing on the adoption of artificial intelligence in the Philippines.

“We're not here to tell them what to do, because they should know what to do, because that's their business,” said MAIN executive director Quenby Go. “If you invest in the right startup, which becomes the next Airbnb or Facebook, then it will grow exponentially, and that's what our investors are looking for,” she added.

Three startups pitched during the event—Empath, an AI-Powered mental health platform; Polar Cold, a hyper-local cold storage rental network; and Xamun AI, a production-grade software specializing in business vision.

Two companies joined the allocation round—InvestED, a student-focused education finance platform, and Verta Bioenergy, a biomass pellet producer targeting coal replacement in industry.

Go also highlighted MAIN’s role in the Sinigang Valley Association, a Poblacion-based group modeled after Silicon Valley that brings together entrepreneurs and startup founders.

MAIN is the Philippines’ largest network of private angel investors, established to bolster the nation’s startup ecosystem by linking investors with promising early-stage businesses.