Emerging ventures from JGSOM earn recognition across national startup platforms

Student-founded ventures from Ateneo’s John Gokongwei School of Management (JGSOM) have gained recognition in national startup competitions: IGNITE Startup World Cup, Startup QC, and NextGenPH. These outcomes reflect the growing impact of the collaborative work of the Ateneo Business Insights Laboratory for Development (BUILD), the Ateneo Intellectual Property Office (AIPO), and the BS Information Technology Entrepreneurship (ITE) Program, as well as notable contributions from students in the BS Management Engineering (ME) Program. These recognitions demonstrate how research work, capstone projects, and early experimentation can evolve into functioning ventures that garner national attention and, hopefully, have a meaningful impact.

Four ventures linked to BS ITE and BS ME students were recognized in national open category competitions and a national public service innovation contest. These ventures include LiteChat, KITA, Avilta, and Soolok:

LiteChat, an AI tool that provides safe and guided access to large language models for schools, was shortlisted for the IGNITE Wildfire 2025 competition on October 7 and later advanced to the Top 10 of the Startup World Cup Philippines Regional event. The team is composed of Francine De Asis (4 BS ITE) and faculty mentors Gabrielle Anne Uy, Jose Ramon Ilagan, and Joseph Benjamin Ilagan. They shared that the recognition encouraged them to formalize the project through BUILD, noting, “We were forced to turn this into a startup out of BUILD recently as we unexpectedly made it to the shortlist of IGNITE PH 2025.” The result served as an early indication that the co-development approach of BUILD and the ITE Program is progressing well.

KITA, a low-connectivity AI tool that assists micro, small, and medium enterprises in digitizing paper-based records, reached a significant milestone at the Development Academy of the Philippines (DAP) NextGenPH Youth Innovators Public Service Innovation Contest. The team advanced to the finals and earned First Runner Up in the college category on November 12, 2025. The venture is led by co-founders Beatrice Lui (5 BS ITE), Zachary Matthew Alabastro (4 BS ME), and Francine De Asis (4 BS ITE), together with BUILD faculty mentors Gabrielle Anne Uy, Jose Ramon Ilagan, and Joseph Benjamin Ilagan, who also support LiteChat. NextGenPH is a national program focused on public service innovation. Reflecting on the growth of the work, Alabastro shared, “What began as a simple conference paper evolved into a real vision.”

Avilta, an AI platform that generates high-converting DTC video ads for e-commerce and startup brands, was awarded Top 3 at the Startup World Cup Philippines Regional. Founded and developed by James Rellera (4 BS ITE), the venture began as a solo capstone project and has since grown into a global platform serving clients across multiple markets. The venture also received valuable academic guidance under the ITE Program and consultations with Program Director Joseph Benjamin Ilagan. Rellera described the experience, saying, “An idea that started as a what-if eventually led to standing on stage among some of the best founders in the region.” 

Soolok, an end-to-end marketplace for foreclosed properties, co-founded by BS ITE student Bryan Kier Leopando, secured a one-million-peso equity-free grant at the Startup QC Cohort 4 Demo Day last November 13, 2025. This was the main cohort rather than the student edition. Although Soolok was not developed through BUILD, the founders received support through various means, including resources available because Ateneo BUILD serves as an AWS Activate Provider. This access gave the team technical credits and cloud services during its early development.

Across these results, most competitions were regular open category tracks. LiteChat, Avilta, and Soolok competed alongside professional founders and established teams. Only the DAP NextGenPH competition had a dedicated student category. The outcomes suggest that the combined support of BUILD, AIPO, ITE, and JGSOM, together with interdisciplinary collaboration between BS ITE and BS ME students, is helping prepare young founders to participate in the broader national innovation ecosystem.

The achievements of LiteChat, KITA, Avilta, and Soolok demonstrate how research work, capstone projects, and early experimentation can evolve into functioning ventures that garner national attention. The coordinated academic, technical, and IP-related support provided by BUILD, AIPO, and the ITE Program helps students move from initial ideas toward ventures that address market and community needs.