The award supports a collaboration with Packworks to help women sari-sari store owners understand and act on AI-powered business insights through practical training, coaching, and human support.

Connected Women has won the Activate AI Challenge, a global initiative led by data.org and supported by Zoom that advances collaborative AI solutions aimed at unlocking economic opportunity and building more resilient futures. Selected from a competitive pool of 500 applications across 76 countries, Connected Women is the only Southeast Asian awardee in the cohort, joining other AI Challenge awardees such as CodeYourFuture – United Kingdom, IDENTI – Peru, Migrasia – Hong Kong, Nest Center for Journalism Innovation and Development – Mongolia, and Umbaji – Togo.

The award supports a collaborative project with Packworks, the Philippine technology company behind the Store Insighting Project (SIP). SIP uses sari-sari store transaction data to generate AI-powered recommendations on inventory, product mix, pricing, and demand patterns. Connected Women’s role is to help women store owners understand, trust, and apply these insights through digital literacy sessions, guided onboarding, hands-on coaching, and community-based feedback loops.

Women-led sari-sari stores are a critical part of local economies across the Philippines. Yet many store owners manage their businesses informally, with limited access to actionable data or digital tools. This project is designed to move women store owners from having limited access to data, to having AI-powered insights they understand, trust, and act on.

“We want AI to be something women entrepreneurs can actually use, not something that feels distant or out of reach. This project is about making AI practical, human-centred, and relevant to small businesses on the ground.” — Agnes Gervacio, CEO, Connected Women

“SIP gives sari-sari store owners the data they need to make smarter business decisions. But data alone does not change behaviour. Partnering with Connected Women means every insight is paired with the coaching and confidence that turns knowledge into action. That is how AI actually reaches the stores that need it most.” — Ibba Bernardo, Co-Founder, Packworks

Connected Women brings extensive experience in digital skills and AI-related training through its Elevate AIDA (Artificial Intelligence Data Annotation) and Elevate GAIL (Generative AI Learning) programs. With a community of 200,000+ members and 3,000+ women trained in AI data annotation, both programs have demonstrated that women with little to no prior AI exposure can build confidence and apply AI tools in practical, business-relevant ways.

For Connected Women, the recognition affirms a core belief: women-led small businesses must not be left behind as AI reshapes how people work, earn, and make decisions. The project aims to expand economic opportunity, strengthen small businesses, and help more women participate in an AI-enabled future with greater confidence and resilience.

“This recognition is a signal that ethical, human-centred AI has a place in mainstream development funding. Connected Women has spent years proving that women in the Philippines can lead in the AI economy: as builders of AI systems, as AI-powered contributors to global workflows, and as entrepreneurs driving local commerce.” — Gina Romero, Executive Chair / Founder, Connected Women

About Connected Women Connected Women is the operating brand of Mettamatch Incorporated, a Philippines-based social impact organisation creating inclusive economic opportunities for women through digital skills training, AI-related work, and human-centred technology adoption.

About Packworks Packworks is a Philippine technology company supporting more than 300,000 sari-sari stores through scalable and accessible digital tools. Its Store Insighting Project (SIP) helps store owners use transaction data and AI-powered insights to improve everyday business decisions.

About data.org data.org is a platform for partnerships to build the field of data science for social impact. The Activate AI Challenge is one of its global initiatives supporting organisations using AI to drive inclusive economic opportunity.