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BEFORE YOU CHECK OUT

Even careful shoppers get burned sometimes. If your parcel never arrives, or arrives as something else entirely, start with the seller and the platform. Raise the issue through the app, and keep your receipts, screenshots, and chat logs. f your complaint is still unresolved after seven days, you can take it further.

HOW AI CAN HELP YOU FIND THE BEST BUY

AI is reshaping how we shop. It can help you spot real sale prices, sort through floods of reviews, build comparisons around your needs, and uncover worthwhile alternatives. But the ultimate smart-shopping strategy is to let AI do the heavy lifting, while keeping your intuition, your values, and your budget sanity firmly in the driver’s seat.

ALL THOSE YELLOW BASKETS, YET WE’RE STILL CROWDING THE MALLS

Even with all the shopping tools available on our phones, people continue to visit malls for reasons that go beyond buying things.

AI VISION FORUM MANILA 2026 SHOWS HOW SMALLER TEAMS CAN BUILD AND SCALE WITH AI

At AI Vision Forum Manila 2026 on October 28, AI platforms and cloud partners showed tools for building, launching, and scaling digital products with smaller teams. They included HowOne's agent-native platform for solo founders, A3SEO's 42-agent SEO engine, and TiDB and TrueWatch for infrastructure. A cloud panel featured Alibaba Cloud, Cloudflare, Oracle, and Huawei Cloud Philippines.

HUAWEI FREEBUDS SE 5 MAX OFFERS 52DB ANC AND 80-HOUR BATTERY 

The HUAWEI FreeBuds SE 5 MAX is coming to the Philippines with up to 52dB Active Noise Cancellation, up to 80 hours of total battery life, and LDAC Hi-Res audio. It launches at a promo price starting at PHP1,999, down from PHP2,999, with a TikTok exclusive on November 8 and availability on Shopee, Lazada, and the HUAWEI Online Store on November 10.

79 PERCENT OF APAC FIRMS SAY AI SPENDING IS TOO INCREMENTAL, AVANADE SURVEY FINDS

Avanade's Build Beyond Limits: AI Reality Report found that 79 percent of APAC respondents agree too much AI investment is directed toward incremental improvements, and only 17 percent say they have fundamentally reshaped how their teams operate around AI. The survey covered 3,600 business decision makers across 11 markets, including 1,400 in Asia-Pacific.

MAYA BACKS DOJ CAMPUS TOUR TO FIGHT DIGITAL SCAMS

Maya supported the DOJ Office of Cybercrime's CyberReady Campus Tour at UP Diliman, where head of corporate affairs Kristoffer Rada said, "A safer digital space needs everyone around the table." Ahead of the holiday shopping season, Maya also reminded consumers to verify sellers and payment instructions and never share passwords or one-time PINs.

UPS-DELBROS EXPAND CLARK HUB AS PH TRADE VOLUMES GROW

UPS and Delbros Group have scaled up operations around the newly expanded UPS Clark Hub. Their partnership began as a service agreement in 1988 and became a joint venture in 1997, the only one left among major global express carriers in the Philippines. The expansion aims to improve freight handling efficiency and extend capacity at the regional port.

YAMAHA SEC RACING TEAM WINS TWO TITLES IN 2026 MOTOIR SEASON

The Yamaha SEC Racing Team closed the 2026 Motul MotoIR National Championship with two overall titles and a runner-up finish. McKinley Kyle Paz won the Super Underbone Open GP Expert Class, April King Mascardo took the Limited GP Expert Class, and JM Malonzo placed second overall in the Open GP Intermediate Class. Paz also won two races in the final round.

NEXT-GEN MYTOYOTA CONNECT BRINGS REMOTE A/C AND LOCKING TO THE ALL-NEW HILUX

Toyota Motor Philippines' Next-Gen myToyota Connect, featuring Toyota Remote, lets eligible All-New Hilux owners control the A/C, check and lock the doors, find their car, and get roadside assistance from their phone. Connected Toyota Insure will soon offer insurance renewal savings of up to 25 percent on the driving-related perils portion of the premium, subject to terms and conditions.

GLOBAL MOBILITY STARTUP MULTIPOLITAN EYES MANILA TECH EXPANSION

Singapore-based Multipolitan has raised USD2 million in seed funding at a USD25 million pre-money valuation, led by EmergentX. The funds will support the December 2026 global launch of its free Multipolitan App for managing visas, travel, and stays abroad, and the company plans to open an office and expand its technology team in Manila.

E-CONOMY SEA 2026: PH DIGITAL ECONOMY ON TRACK TO HIT USD42-B

The Philippines' digital economy is on track to reach USD42 billion in GMV by the end of 2026, according to the 11th e-Conomy SEA report by Google, Temasek, and Bain & Company. The report also found that 53 percent of the working population uses standalone GenAI platforms, and digital payments grew 23 percent, the fastest in Southeast Asia.

PLDT GLOBAL AND SM CINEMA USE RAMDAM TO REACH OVERSEAS FILIPINOS

PLDT Global and SM Cinema are using Ramdam, PLDT Global's digital advertising platform, to connect with overseas Filipinos. The Love Knows No Distance campaign, tied to the local release of the film Dear You, let Filipinos abroad send heartfelt messages and gift cinema experiences to loved ones back home through TinBo. PLDT Global's digital marketplace serves more than half a million Filipinos across the Middle East, North America, Europe, and Asia.

TIKTOK SHOP TEAMS UP WITH DTI FOR SMARTER ONLINE SHOPPING 

Ahead of the 11.11 and 12.12 Mega Sales, TikTok Shop teamed up with the Department of Trade and Industry for Consumer Welfare Month this October. Its #TikTokShopSmart campaign shares tips on product safety, authentic products, and consumer rights. TikTok Shop's Global Safety Report for July 2025 to July 2026 says it rejected more than 208 million products before listing, equating to 99 percent of violative products being removed proactively.

VISA REPORT: FILIPINOS EMBRACE NEW WAYS TO MOVE MONEY

The Philippines is the top receiver-led remittance market among key markets in Visa's Money Travels 2026 report, with 45 percent of Filipino respondents receiving money from overseas in the last 12 months. Mobile wallets are seen as the fastest transfer method, and while 42 percent of respondents have some awareness of stablecoins, only 38 percent trust stablecoin transfers, compared with 81 percent for cash remittances. About 79 percent want more education on stablecoins.

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