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Sanas Deepens Philippine Investment, Taps IBPAP Chief Jack Madrid to Lead Market Expansion

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Jack Madrid joins as Sanas Ambassador, Philippines and Christopher Venturina as Director of Business Development to strengthen relationships with enterprises, BPO providers, and technology partners across the Philippines.

MANILA, Philippines, Aug. 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The Philippines has built a global reputation for delivering customer experiences at scale. Now, as artificial intelligence reshapes the way businesses connect with customers, Speech AI company Sanas is strengthening its presence in the country to help shape the future of customer experience.

Effective October 11, 2026, Sanas will appoint Jack Madrid, current President and CEO of the IT & Business Process Association of the Philippines (IBPAP), as Sanas Ambassador, Philippines, and Christopher Venturina as Director of Business Development, Philippines. The appointments come as Sanas strengthens its local operations, expands customer investments, and builds deeper relationships with enterprises, BPO providers, and technology partners in the country.

The Philippines is a key market for Sanas as it brings AI into an industry where Filipino talent already plays a leading role in serving customers around the world.

Sanas currently works with more than 200 enterprises globally and processes millions of live voice interactions every day. The company was also recently ranked No. 8 on the 2026 Inc. 5000 list of America’s Fastest-Growing Private Companies, while ranking No. 1 in both AI & Data and California.

“The Philippines has spent decades building one of the world’s strongest customer experience industries. What AI changes is not the value of that talent, but what people can accomplish with the right technology,” said Sharath Keshava Narayana, Co-Founder and CEO of Sanas. “We are investing in the Philippines because we believe the country can play a leading role in defining how people and AI work together to create better customer experiences.”

A familiar industry leader for a new era
Madrid joins the company as Sanas Ambassador, Philippines at a pivotal moment for the Philippine IT-BPM industry, bringing more than two decades of experience across banking, technology, digital commerce, media, and industry leadership.

As President and CEO of IBPAP, Madrid helped lead the country’s IT-BPM sector through significant transformation and growth. Under his leadership, the industry surpassed US$40 billion in annual revenues and supported approximately 1.9 million Digital Filipino Workers, reinforcing the Philippines’ position as a global leader in technology-enabled services.

His move to Sanas brings together two sides of a conversation increasingly important to the Philippine economy: the country’s strength in human-led customer service and the growing role of AI in the workplace.

“The conversation around AI and the Philippines should not simply be about what technology can replace. It should be about what technology can help Filipino talent do better,” said Jack Madrid, Sanas Ambassador, Philippines. “The Philippines has an opportunity to lead the next chapter of global customer experience by combining the strengths of its people with technology that helps them communicate, perform, and connect more effectively. That is what makes this opportunity with Sanas particularly exciting to me.”

Throughout his career, Madrid has held senior leadership positions at organizations including Citibank, Dell Technologies, Yahoo! Philippines, MTV Philippines, Ayala Corporation, and Multiply.com. He has also been a prominent voice on AI adoption, workforce readiness, digital infrastructure, and the future of work.

Turning AI interest into business impact
Sanas is also strengthening its commercial presence in the Philippines with the appointment of Venturina, who brings extensive experience across the country’s outsourcing and customer experience ecosystem.

In his new role, Venturina will focus on expanding Sanas’ relationships with enterprise customers, BPO providers, and technology partners in the Philippines and across the region.

“The conversation has moved from whether AI will affect customer experience to how companies can use it effectively and responsibly,” said Christopher Venturina, Director of Business Development, Philippines, Sanas. “Our role is to help organizations turn that interest into practical applications that support employees, make conversations more effective, and deliver better customer experiences.”

That shift is increasingly relevant as Philippine enterprises and BPOs navigate a global market where customers expect faster, more personalized, and more seamless interactions, while businesses face growing pressure to improve productivity and performance.

For Sanas, the opportunity is not simply to automate customer interactions, but to help organizations combine technology with human expertise to create better experiences.

“Technology should ultimately make it easier for people to understand and connect with one another,” said Shawn Zhang, CTO and Co-Founder of Sanas. “The Philippines has shown the world what exceptional customer experience looks like. We believe AI can help Filipino professionals and the organizations they work with take that capability even further.”

With Madrid and Venturina joining its Philippine leadership team, Sanas is strengthening its presence in a market it sees as central to the future of customer experience.

The future of customer experience will be defined by the combination of AI and human expertise. The Philippines is uniquely positioned to lead that future, pairing world-class talent with technologies that help people communicate more effectively, perform at a higher level, and deliver better outcomes for customers.

About Sanas
Sanas is a real-time Speech AI platform built to power global enterprise and communications platforms. Founded in 2021 in Palo Alto, California, Sanas enables speech to be understood clearly and naturally across languages, accents, and environments. The platform provides real-time speech enhancement, accent transformation, and language understanding that can be embedded directly into applications, platforms, and carrier networks. In 2026, Sanas was named the No. 1 AI & Data company in America on the Inc. 5000 list of Fastest-Growing Private Companies and also earned the No. 1 ranking in California and No. 8 overall. Learn more at Sanas.ai.

Media Contact:
Havas Red for Sanas
Sanas@havas.com

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Never forget breakfast again with the new UNCLE TOBYS Oat Ring

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 UNCLE TOBYS is giving Australians the chance to get their hands on the world’s least advanced wearable, because breakfast shouldn’t need biometrics T&Cs apply.

SYDNEY, Oct. 9, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — In a world where everything from sleep to stress levels and recovery can be optimised, UNCLE TOBYS has identified the next frontier: remembering breakfast. Enter the Oat Ring – a wearable with one job of reminding you to put your overnight oats in the fridge for tomorrow’s breakfast. 

The UNCLE TOBYS Oat Ring features: 

Milk-proof technologyIndustry-leading non-charging capabilities Zero health trackingZero sleep data Fully wearable designA reminder to put oats in the fridge 

No app. No dashboard. No sleep score. No biometrics. Just a simple reminder that breakfast does not need to be optimised. 

The launch comes as nearly a third of Australians aged 18+ spend more than $3,300 a year on wellness products and services, while over half (55%) say they feel fatigued and overwhelmed by wellness content – from sleep scores, 4:30 am alarms and ice baths, to mouth tape, vagus nerve stimulation and the latest cottage cheese trend. 

Developed in response to over one in two (56%) Australians skipping breakfast at least once a week, the UNCLE TOBYS team is launching the Oat Ring as part of its Oatimisation Protocol — a no-fuss routine for making breakfast happen: 

POURCHILLEAT REPEAT 

To champion the Oatimisation Protocol, UNCLE TOBYS has appointed Liam Stapleton as its first C-OAT-O (Chief Oat Officer). His extensive lack of experience running a multinational tech company made him uniquely qualified to launch a tech ring that tracks absolutely nothing. He says: “The wellness industry keeps telling us we need more data, more tracking and more optimisation. We had a different idea. What if people just needed a reminder to make breakfast?”

UNCLE TOBYS Head of Marketing, Kimberley Finsten, said: “The Oat Ring is probably the least advanced wearable ever created, and that’s exactly the point. It doesn’t measure, monitor, or optimise a thing. It just reminds you to put your Overnight Oats in the fridge before bed. In a world obsessed with tracking everything, we’re celebrating something much simpler: making it easier to start the day with a nutritious breakfast.”

Limited Edition UNCLE TOBYS Oat Ring
A limited number of Oat Rings are up for grabs. To be in the running, visit the pinned Instagram post on UNCLE TOBYS social channels and comment on the pinned promotional post, providing an answer to the question: “What’s the most unhinged thing you’ve done to “optimise” your life?” (in 25 words or less). Competition Period: The competition commences at 6:00 am AEST on 28 September 2026 and closes at 11:59 pm AEDT on 11 October 2026. T&Cs apply.*
UNCLE TOBYS Overnight Oats are available in a range of flavours at major supermarkets nationwide. For more information about the Oatimise Your Life campaign, visit www.uncletobys.com.au/oatimise. 

END

Research methodology 
The UNCLE TOBYS Oatimise Your Life research was conducted among a nationally representative sample of n=1,019 Australians aged 18+, across all states and territories, in September 2026 by Pureprofile.

Abbreviated competition T&Cs
*Starts 6:00am AEST 28/9/26. Ends 11:59pm AEDT 11/10/26. Aus. res. 18+. Limit 1 entry/person. Prize: engraved UNCLE TOBYS ‘oat’ silver ring (6mm wide) with synthetic Ruby stone & 1 x sachet of UNCLE TOBYS Overnight Oats (prize valued at up to $350.70 ea) (30 to be won). Judging occurs 10am AEDT 14/10/26 at 1 Homebush Bay Drive, Rhodes NSW 2138. Prize winners notified via Instagram DM, and published at www.nestle.com.au/productnews/winners by 20/10/26. Claim prize by 11:59pm AEDT 17/11/26. Re-judging occurs 12pm AEDT 19/11/26. Promoter: Nestlé Australia Ltd, ABN 77 000 011 316, 1 Homebush Bay Drive, Rhodes NSW 2138. See https://www.uncletobys.com.au/oatimise for Terms and Conditions.

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Singapore’s Space SME OculloSpace Successfully Flies First Rocket, AZAD “The Dreamer”, from Oman

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Self-funded maiden flight achieves an apogee altitude of 10 km, marking a milestone in OculloSpace’s space technology development, six months after its first satellite launch, as the company advances towards its 100 km ambition.

SINGAPORE, Oct. 9, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Singapore-based space technology company OculloSpace has successfully completed the maiden flight of AZAD “The Dreamer”, its first experimental sounding rocket, making a significant milestone in the company’s development of launch and space technology capabilities. The rocket achieved an apogee altitude of 10 km during its maiden flight from Etlaq Spaceport, Oman.

The mission, designed Karman X1, was conducted in collaboration with Oman-based aerospace company Stellar Kinetics MCT, with support from international partners across Singapore, Oman and Australia.

The two-stage rocket, measuring 4.3 metres and weighing 26 kg, successfully lifted off from Etlaq on October 1st, 2026, reaching an apogee altitude of 10 km. Both stages completed their burns, with telemetry received throughout the flight. While the upper-stage parachute did not deploy, launch operator Stellar Kinetics reported that the majority of the mission objectives were achieved, providing valuable flight data for future development.

A Singapore-Owned Space Technology Programme

Initiated by Dr Franco Gan, Founder and CEO of OculloSpace, the AZADRocket programme represents approximately two years of development and was self-funded by the company.

OculloSpace owns and leads the AZADRocket programme, retaining ownership of its programme intellectual property. The mission brought together international space industry expertise, with Stellar Kinetics serving as an engineering, manufacturing and launch partner in Oman.

“Six months ago, we sent our first satellite to orbit, and now we have flown our own rocket. I’ve always looked at the sky and wondered whether I could build something that reaches it. The Dreamer represents about two years of work by our team to take an idea from the drawing board to an actual flight,” said Dr Franco Gan.  

The mission also involved Orbit2Orbit (Australia), which supplied the 1kg Snowball experimental payload, and WWG Engineering Pte. Ltd. (Singapore), which contributed coated material samples for in-flight evaluation. Etlaq Spaceport provided launch infrastructure and range safety support.

Two Space Milestones in Six Months

The flight follows OculloSpace’s flight satellite mission, DECIMALSAT-1, a PocketQube satellite deployed into orbit through Alba Orbital aboard SpaceX’s Transporter-16 rideshare mission on 30 March 2026.

Within approximately six months, OculloSpace has achieved two important milestones: deploying its first satellite into orbit and completing the maiden flight of its first experimental rocket, achieving an apogee altitude of 10 km.

These achievements strengthen the company’s experience in satellite systems, experimental rocket development, flight operations and international space missions, laying the foundation for future space technology and commercial opportunities.

Next Ambition: Reaching 100 km

Building on the Karman X1 mission, OculloSpace is developing AZAD-2, its next-generation experimental sounding rocket targeting an altitude of 100 km, the Kármán line widely recognised as the boundary of space.

The company plans to apply lessons and flight data from The Dreamer towards AZAD-2, with future opportunities for suborbital research, space technology demonstrations and commercial payload services.

OculloSpace is exploring up to 5 kg of research payload capacity aboard AZAD-2, subject to further engineering validation, testing and regulatory approvals.

“Our next goal is AZAD-2 and a 100 km flight. We are now looking to work with partners who share our ambition to develop more accessible launch and space capabilities from the region, and to take what we have demonstrated with The Dreamer to the next level,” said Dr Franco Gan.

OculloSpace welcomes discussions with strategic investors, space industry partners, research institutions and prospective payload customers interested in participating in its next phase of development.

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‘Kung fu tea’: US journalist Douglas’ journey into the art of Wuyi rock tea

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BEIJING, Oct. 8, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — A news report from chinadaily.com.cn:

Three hundred years ago, a British man stole the seeds of Wuyi rock tea to plant them elsewhere. Three centuries later, US journalist Douglas travels to Xiamei village at the foot of Wuyi Mountain in Fujian province to learn the age-old craft.

After the entire experience, he understands why people call it “kung fu tea”. For him, picking tea requires “eagle claw skills” and shaking the leaves demands “tai chi hands”. Every step is filled with a sense of mastery and dedication.

Why did Douglas travel all the way to Xiamei village to learn the art of tea-making? What are his insights on the 13,000 km Tea Road? Watch the video to find out.

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