IGNITE CIRCLE 8 | JULY 2018

You are not here by accident.

We’ve searched Manila far and wide and have reason to believe you are one of us.

Here’s one way to find out.

[PLEASE UPDATE COLLAGE USING PHOTOS THAT SHOW A) A BIGGER EXPANSE OF ATTENDEES (I.E., WIDER ANGLE SHOTS), B) A BROADER DIVERSITY OF SENIOR EXECS TO YOUNG UNS, AND C) HAPPY, ENGAGED, ACTIVE PEOPLE]

We are CEOs, we are founders, we are investors, we are in corporate, we are in startups, we are in non-profits, we might even be in government, we are seasoned professionals, we are just starting out, we are born and bred in Manila, we are new to Manila, we believe in God, we don’t believe in god. We come from all walks – a diversity rarely seen here, but what makes us kindred spirits is the flame that burns within.

[PLACE VIDEO HERE WITH APPROPRIATE SPACING]

Here’s a peg from Steve Jobs of the flame we seek to ignite.

Do you have a restlessness that always makes a difference, yet the sense that your best is still to come?

Do you have a passion you could embrace as your life’s work, as if your whole life led to it?

Have you met a pain you are especially gifted (and compelled!) to heal? A problem so pervasive its solution could well birth the first Filipino unicorn – the first billion-dollar Filipino company to impact humanity and matter on a global scale?

Would you like to embark on the greatest journey of your life, where your greatest joy meets the world’s greatest needs – and take many others with you?

A very different kind of Silicon Valley needs to rise when one of the world’s hottest economies also hosts one of its most promising but oh-so-broken demographics.


[ABOVE COLLAGE IS OK, NICE TINT. LET'S JUST UPDATE DATE AND CIRCLE VIII]

IGNITE CIRCLE VIII
Saturday, 21 July 2018
12:00 pm Onwards

Venue Details: 
B1 Townhall (ABCD)
The Globe Tower
32nd St. corner 7th Ave.
Bonifacio Global City, Taguig

No Registration, No Entry.

What to expect in an Ignite Circle?

12:00 | Check-In: Requires online RSVP. BYOD (bring your own device) – phone, tablet or laptop with cloud access. IGNITE is a transmedia experience like you’ve never had before!

12:45 | Ignite! Gong sounds 3x – it’s time to jumpstart our circle with a visioning-presencing experience, followed by a short, powerful film, out of which we declare the Ignite Manifesto.

You’ve likely never heard anything like it. From here, we take you on an afternoon-long experience that will convince you, or disturb, that maybe you are one of us.

1:30 | Personal Discerment A group exercise journeyed alone. What ignites your deepest joy? What ignites your greatest compassion? Where do these flames intersect? Who else might be journeying on that same path?

2:30 | Pieces of the Puzzle Personal discernment meets courageous conversation meets performance art: each of us holds literally a piece of the puzzle. We thereby shape, expand, and reshape a collective force that takes on the evolving movements of our individual parts.

4:00 | Breakout We process what just happened and where we can take them going forward.

5:00 | Send Off We wrap up with a vision of possibilities and potential next steps – plus a surprise ending helped along by a healthy dose of algorithm wrapped in an individual Gift Box for each Igniter.

…

Happy hour, socials, and light reception follow until 9pm. Snacks and coffee will be provided throughout the Circle.

…

We look forward to seeing you for Ignite Circle VIII! Here’s to the crazy ones!

– Ignite Corps ’18

…

Seats are free, but limited so we would greatly appreciate your RSVP below.

Visit Past Ignite Circle

IGNITE xCHANGE | Apr 2018

You’re invited to one of Manila’s most curated gatherings. Find out why.

IGNITE xCHANGE II

The Wicked Labs Series

MEGA MANILA 2020: THE FUTURE OF LEARNING, WORK, AND MAXIMIZING HUMAN POTENTIAL

Plus a major announcement coming out of Ignite xChange I.

Rise and shine to Manila’s greater Silicon Valley. Yes, Manila. We’re not the world’s second most populous city for nothing (behind Tokyo’s 33MM, ahead of NYC’s 17MM).

Every day in our bustling metropolis of 24,000,000, we wake to a laboratory-full of the world’s most wicked problems.

Which puts us in pole position to solve them. We enjoy a massive advantage being so up-close and personal to a whole biodiversity of the world’s most pressing problems, and thus, to a universe of innovations – if we cared enough to solve them.

Manila’s store of wicked problems holds a torrent of potential unicorns, billion-dollar innovations that impact humanity and matter on a global scale

– if we cared enough to solve them.

This is what every IGNITE xCHANGE is about.

We ignite compassion and fan the flames of our inimitable brand of innovation.

Here’s how:

1. We focus on one of Manila’s wicked problems. In this case: the future of learning, work, and maximizing human potential.

2. We gather 50 of Manila’s bright minds, restless spirits, and experienced hands from a diversity of sectors in and around our defined space. Diversity is key. Among us, we will have luminaries in economics, urban planning, architecture, design, construction, finance, insurance, leasing, home furnishings, consumer durables, home maintenance and repair, security, lifestyle, health, education, entertainment, etc. And we will be right alongside innovators who are pushing the envelope in fields like collaborative consumption and the sharing economy, artificial intelligence, smart devices and internet of things, med tech and home healthcare, edutech, fintech, etc.

3. We use experience-design thinking to create an exhilarating mix of exchanges – from expert sharings directly from the battlefield, to game-enhanced breakouts and plenaries – we challenge ourselves to identify the most viable opportunities to innovate in our defined space. Solutions are always great, but when the paradigm itself is broken, we push the envelope and challenge our xCHANGERS to re-imagine a wholly different future and how to make it happen.

4. As your hosts for every IGNITE xCHANGE, we make sure the flow of energy and ideas continues beyond the day of. We extend the experience through transmedia platforms that sustain continuing exchange and realtime updates on ongoing collaborations and how our community is acting on the mix of ideas and energy exchanged.

5. Finally, we invest and execute on the best fruits of our IGNITE xCHANGE, opening the door and facilitating collaboration for those of us who want to participate. When a viable innovation opportunity emerges, we commit resources to nurture and pursue innovation: from idea, to design and prototype, through rapid ready-fire-aim MVP (Minimum Viable Product) sprints that test and bring innovations to market in 6-month commitments.

And for you, this added thrill of discovery:

Of all the people we could have chosen, WHY YOU?

What is it in you that could be, with all of us, a force for innovation?

…..

Every IGNITE experience proceeds from this same core belief:

That we Ignite, not just for self, but for each other. Because what we are born to do, we are born to do with others. We need each other’s Genius. And far beyond Genius, we need each other to be on this journey, to fulfill this necessary progression: from Genius, to Purpose and Mission, to Collaboration, and ultimately, to Innovation and Impact.

This is how we lift each other to heights we never in our wildest dreams, or loftiest ambitions, dared.

Full IGNITE MANIFESTO below.

IGNITE xCHANGE I
Saturday, 10 March 2018
1:00-5:00 pm

Happy hour and light reception follow.

Manila's top bartender 
will be mixing up UNGAVA, 
6 different arctic botanicals 
that make up one of 
the best gins in town!

CAMERON FORBES
MANILA POLO CLUB

McKinley Road,
Forbes Park,
Makati City



Seats are free, but limited.
We would greatly appreciate 
your RSVP below.

We hope you will join us for this very different take on problem-solving, innovation and venture capital.

– Andre Yap on behalf of Ignite Corps ’18

RSVP REQUIRED:

IGNITE MANIFESTO

At Ignite, we know these to be true:

First, that I am gifted with my own Genius – unique, unrepeated and unrepeatable for all time.

Second, that my singular Genius bears the thumbprint of Who I Am and Why I am Here. Genius points to Purpose, Purpose to Genius.

Third, that I can only give out of what I have been given. And what I have been given, I must give and live for others. Genius finds its fullness in a Purpose bigger than self.

Fourth, that if I am honest and brave, my Genius and Purpose will find their manifest call in a shared Mission – with others, for others. A Mission rooted in finding that particular slice of humanity whose particular pains I am particularly gifted (and compelled!) to heal.

Fifth, that this shared Mission leads naturally to Collaboration, and ultimately, to Innovation. Shared Mission demands Shared Genius: mine, yours, ours. If we are a collection of our own Genius – each unique, unrepeated, unrepeatable – where can we go, but to Innovation.

…

We Ignite, therefore, not just for self, but for each other. Because what we are born to do, we are born to do with others. We need each other’s Genius. And far beyond Genius, we need each other to be on this journey, to fulfill the necessary progression: from Genius, to Purpose and Mission, to Collaboration, and ultimately, to Innovation and Impact.

This is the path of transcendence. This is how we lift each other to heights we never in our wildest dreams, or loftiest ambitions, dared

www.ignitegifts.com

Do what you were born to do in the company of others who are doing what they were born to do

IGNITE xCHANGE I | Mar 2018

You’re invited to one of Manila’s most curated gatherings. Find out why.

IGNITE xCHANGE I

The Wicked Labs Series

RADICAL INNOVATIONS WE CAN PURUSE TODAY TO VASTLY RE-IMAGINE MANILA’S HOME DWELLING OF TOMORROW.

What if the future were in our hands. (Oh, but we will show you it is!)

Rise and shine to Manila’s greater Silicon Valley. Yes, Manila. We’re not the world’s second most populous city for nothing (behind Tokyo’s 33MM, ahead of NYC’s 17MM).

Everyday in our bustling metropolis of 24,000,000, we wake to a laboratory-full of the world’s most wicked problems.

Which puts us in pole position to solve them. We enjoy a massive advantage being so up-close and personal to a whole biodiversity of the world’s most pressing problems, and thus, to a universe of innovations – if we cared enough to solve them.

Manila’s store of wicked problems holds a torrent of potential unicorns, billion-dollar innovations that impact humanity and matter on a global scale

– if we cared enough to solve them.

This is what every IGNITE xCHANGE is about.

We ignite compassion and fan the flames of our inimitable brand of innovation.

Here’s how:

1. We focus on one of Manila’s wicked problems.

In this case: urban home dwelling, projected to grow 50% through 2021, driven primarily by the middle-income segment. It’s not a problem per se, but massive changes are happening and it will all converge on home sweet home. Quality of life is degrading at an accelerating pace at the same time as massive demographic, socio-economic, and behavioral shifts are changing the fabric and flow of everyday life. Try mixing all these up in a wicked stew: traffic, pollution, over-burdened infrastructure, continued abuse of meager-to-non-existent urban planning, a growing middle class composed of younger, more mobile workforce that’s marrying later and having less kids, while being disproportionately concentrated in sectors (e.g., BPO and its related sectors) that are under threat from technological shifts (e.g., AI), growing income gaps and numbers of un- and under-employed, etc.

All these converge at home. Home is where the heart is, and in our view, the experience of home dwelling is rife for innovation today, rife for re-imagining today, so we can build a better life for tomorrow.

2. We gather 50 of Manila’s bright minds, restless spirits, and experienced hands from a diversity of sectors in and around our defined space. Diversity is key. Among us, we will have luminaries in economics, urban planning, architecture, design, construction, finance, insurance, leasing, home furnishings, consumer durables, home maintenance and repair, security, lifestyle, health, education, entertainment, etc. And we will be right alongside innovators who are pushing the envelope in fields like collaborative consumption and the sharing economy, artificial intelligence, smart devices and internet of things, med tech and home healthcare, edutech, fintech, etc.

3. We use experience-design thinking to create an exhilarating mix of exchanges – from 10×6 expert sharings (10 experts, 6 minutes each) directly from their respective battlefields, to game-enhanced breakouts and plenaries – we challenge ourselves to identify the most viable opportunities to innovate in our defined space. Solutions are always great, but when the paradigm itself is broken, we push the envelope and challenge our xCHANGERS to re-imagine a wholly different future and how to make it happen.

4. As your hosts for every IGNITE xCHANGE, we make sure the flow of energy and ideas continues beyond the day of. We extend the experience through transmedia platforms that sustain continuing exchange and realtime updates on ongoing collaborations and how our community is acting on the mix of ideas and energy exchanged.

5. Finally, we invest and execute on the best fruits of our IGNITE xCHANGE, opening the door and facilitating collaboration for those of us who want to participate. When a viable innovation opportunity emerges, we commit resources to nurture and pursue innovation: from idea, to design and prototype, through rapid ready-fire-aim MVP (Minimum Viable Product) sprints that test and bring innovations to market in 6-month commitments.

And for you, this added thrill of discovery:

Of all the people we could have chosen, WHY YOU?

What is it in you that could be, with all of us, a force for innovation?

…..

Every IGNITE experience proceeds from this same core belief:

That we Ignite, not just for self, but for each other. Because what we are born to do, we are born to do with others. We need each other’s Genius. And far beyond Genius, we need each other to be on this journey, to fulfill this necessary progression: from Genius, to Purpose and Mission, to Collaboration, and ultimately, to Innovation and Impact.

This is how we lift each other to heights we never in our wildest dreams, or loftiest ambitions, dared.

Full IGNITE MANIFESTO below.

IGNITE xCHANGE I
Saturday, 10 March 2018
1:00-5:00 pm

Manila Polo Club



Seats are free, but limited.
We would greatly appreciate 
your RSVP below.

We hope you will join us for this very different take on problem-solving, innovation and venture capital.

– Andre Yap on behalf of Ignite Corps ’18

RSVP Required.

IGNITE MANIFESTO

At Ignite, we know these to be true:

First, that I am gifted with my own Genius – unique, unrepeated and unrepeatable for all time.

Second, that my singular Genius bears the thumbprint of Who I Am and Why I am Here. Genius points to Purpose, Purpose to Genius.

Third, that I can only give out of what I have been given. And what I have been given, I must give and live for others. Genius finds its fullness in a Purpose bigger than self.

Fourth, that if I am honest and brave, my Genius and Purpose will find their manifest call in a shared Mission – with others, for others. A Mission rooted in finding that particular slice of humanity whose particular pains I am particularly gifted (and compelled!) to heal.

Fifth, that this shared Mission leads naturally to Collaboration, and ultimately, to Innovation. Shared Mission demands Shared Genius: mine, yours, ours. If we are a collection of our own Genius – each unique, unrepeated, unrepeatable – where can we go, but to Innovation.

…

We Ignite, therefore, not just for self, but for each other. Because what we are born to do, we are born to do with others. We need each other’s Genius. And far beyond Genius, we need each other to be on this journey, to fulfill the necessary progression: from Genius, to Purpose and Mission, to Collaboration, and ultimately, to Innovation and Impact.

This is the path of transcendence. This is how we lift each other to heights we never in our wildest dreams, or loftiest ambitions, dared

IGNITE 21 | Feb 2018

We chose you for this special invite

IGNITE 21, CHAPTER I

A THURSDAY AFTERNOON RETREAT FOR A LIFETIME OF YOUR GREATEST IMPACT, IGNITED!

By invite only. Max 21 Igniters.

Give a man fish and feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and feed him for a lifetime.

Shall we exchange gifts? Share a Thursday afternoon of your life and we will share one of life’s great treasures. We call it:

THE IGNITE TUG-OF-LOVE

A Lifelong Framework and Practice for Unleashing your Greatest Genius, Purpose, and Impact. You will learn how to make this real in your daily life, and in the people around you:

My Genius bears the thumbprint of Who I am and Why I am here. Genius points to Purpose, Purpose to Genius. The more I live my Purpose, the more I find my Genius; and the more I embrace my greater and greater Genius, the more I am revealed my greater and greater Purpose.

This is the path of transcendence. This is how we lift each other to heights we never in our wildest dreams, or loftiest ambitions, dared.

Let’s spend the afternoon together, 21 kindred sprits, learning to unleash, unleash, and keep unleashing our boundless Genius, Purpose and Impact for the rest of our lives.

IGNITE 21, CHAPTER I
Thursday, 22 February 2018
1:30 - 5:30 pm

DISCOVERY PRIMEA 
6749 AYALA AVENUE

Here's a visual preview 
of the Ignite 21 experience...

Cozy nooks in marble and deep walnut
– for small group sharings…

Exclusive use of a magical space lost in time
– for our plenaries and breakouts. Plus a
surprise setting for alone-time reflection…

Happy hour and socials await us post- Retreat. Plus the company of Igniters who weren’t part of our 21.

We cap it off with dinner and fellowship
at one of Manila’s top spots!

PHP 2,100.00*
includes 
Dinner Fellowship 
@ Flame Restaurant



Limited to 21 Igniters. 
By Invitation Only. 
First come, first served. 
RSVP required.

* We take pride in this. 
Of 30+ iconic events in 2018, 
IGNITE 21 is the rare one 
where we charge a fee.

RSVP REQUIRED:

I will join you for Ignite 21. Please reserve my spot!
I can’t join you this time, but please invite me for the next Ignite 21.
I’m not up for this. I’d rather not get an invite again.

– Ignite Corps ’18

www.ignitegifts.com

Do what you were born to do in the company of others who are doing what they were born to do.

IGNITE CIRCLE 6 | Feb 2018

You are not here by accident.

Someone saw something in you. We’ve searched Manila far and wide and have reason to believe you are one of us.

Here’s one way to find out.

IGNITE CIRCLE VI

AN AFTERNOON OF EXPERIENTIAL DISCERNMENT:

OF MISFITS, REBELS, AND A FOMENTING MOVEMENT

It ignites in these Circles, then rambles on, like a rampaging, irrepressible wild fire. A force for innovation/collaboration (they’re necessary flipsides) rarely seen in Manila. A fomenting movement to match the lab full of wicked challenges 103,000,000 of us endure daily.

Here’s a peg from Steve Jobs of the flame we seek to ignite.

Ignite Circle 1 was born April Fools Day 2017. We started as a handful of crazies jumping off the plane and building the IGNITE parachute on the hurtle down. Ready, fire, aim. Growing from Circle to Circle to now more than a few hundred of Manila’s restless spirits, we confront these questions as we bring more and more kindreds to each Circle:

Do you have a restlessness that always makes a difference, yet the sense that your best is still to come?

Do you have a passion you could embrace as your life’s work, as if your whole life led to it?

Have you met a pain you are especially gifted (and compelled!) to heal – a problem so pervasive its solution could well birth the first Filipino unicorn?

Would you like to embark on the greatest journey of your life, where your greatest joy meets the world’s greatest needs – and take many others with you?

Is that a yes, yes, yes, YES!

Allow us to share what we’re doing about it – how, when, where, with who – and how might it change the course of history if we dared this mighty thing together.

A very different kind of Silicon Valley needs to rise when one of the world’s hottest economies also hosts one of its most promising but oh so broken demographics.

Join us for the all-new

IGNITE CIRCLE VI
Saturday, 03 February 2018
12:00 pm Onward

Unilab Bayanihan Center
JY Campos Hall
8008 Pioneer Street
Mandaluyong City


No Registration, No Entry.

12:00 | Check-In: Requires online RSVP. BYOD (bring your own device) – phone, tablet or laptop with cloud access. IGNITE is a transmedia experience like you’ve never had before!

1:00 | Ignite! Gong sounds 3x at 1pm sharp. Time to jumpstart our all-new Ignite Circle VI with a visioning-presencing experience, followed by a short, powerful film viewing, out of which we declare the Ignite Manifesto.

You’ve likely never heard anything like it. From here, we take you on an afternoon-long experience that will convince you, or disturb, that maybe you are one of us.

1:30 | Personal Discerment A group exercise journeyed alone. What ignites your deepest joy? What ignites your greatest compassion? Where do these flames intersect? Who else might be journeying on that same path?

2:30 | Pieces of the Puzzle Personal discernment meets courageous conversation meets performance art: each of us holds literally a piece of the puzzle. We thereby shape, expand, and reshape a collective force that takes on the evolving movements of our individual parts.

4:00 | Breakout We process what just happened…

5:00 | Send Off We wrap up with a vision of possibilities and potential next steps – plus a surprise ending helped along by a healthy dose of algorithm and wrapped in an individual Gift Box for each Igniter.

…

Happy hour, socials, and light reception follow until 9pm. Snacks and coffee will be provided throughout the Circle.

…

We look forward to seeing you for Ignite Circle VI! Here’s to the crazy ones!

– Ignite Corps ’18

…

Seats are free, but limited so we would greatly appreciate your RSVP below.

IGNITE CIRCLE 5 | Oct 2017

It’s our great pleasure to invite you to

IGNITE CIRCLE V

BOLDLY, WHERE NONE HAVE GONE BEFORE

We mean literally where none have gone before (scroll if you can’t wait!).

But we mean it figuratively too. Steve Jobs was right: the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do. Innovation is never just about the what or the how. It’s about people and purpose: the Who and their Why. And then it’s Who Else – because no one advances humanity alone.

Around here we’re starting to call it

A MOVEMENT:

DO WHAT YOU WERE BORN TO DO IN THE COMPANY OF OTHERS WHO ARE DOING WHAT THEY WERE BORN TO DO.

A Movement that started with a handful of crazies jumping off the plane and building the IGNITE parachute on the hurtle down, growing every month to now more than a few hundred of Manila’s restlessly brilliant spirits – each of us pushing these same powerful questions, as we bring more kindreds to each Circle:

Are you a relentless high achiever with a sense that your best is yet to come?

Do you have a passion you could embrace as your life’s work, as if your whole life led to it?

Have you met a pain you are especially gifted (and compelled!) to heal – a problem so pervasive many would be willing to pay for a solution (or pay much for a solution)?

Would you like to embark on the greatest journey of your life, where your greatest joy meets the world’s greatest needs?

As always, our mix of heroes, superpowers and stories, and thus, our serendipities and intersections in each IGNITE Circle stay different and magical every time.

Join us for Ignite Circle V on 07 October 2017.

We’re thrilled to be one of the first events ever in the Ateneo’s iconic new innovation hub, the Arete!

IGNITE CIRCLE 5
Saturday, 07 October 2017
1:00pm to 6:00pm

THE ARETÊ
EDUARDO J. ABOITIZ SANDBOX ZONE
3RD FLOOR
GEORGE SK TY LEARNING INNOVATION WING
Ateneo de Manila University,
Loyola Heights, QC

No Registration, No Entry.

12:30 | Check-In: Requires online registration. BYOD (bring your own device) – phone, tablet or laptop with cloud access. IGNITE is a transmedia experience like you’ve never had before!

1:30 | Ignite! All new – but still not our mother’s usual welcome remarks. (We leave the welcome for last, as you’ll see).

2:00 | Hero’s Journey: A personal framework for our greatest journey in life – as told live by Igniters in various stages of their journey. Guaranteed to fire us up for what’s next…

3:00 | Personal Discerment of Gifts: Embracing your super powers and that slice of the universe meant for you and you alone.

3:30 | Breakout Session: Exchange Gifts.

4:30 | Birth of a Movement: Starts with your own Gift. Ends with “I’d love to meet someone who is passionate about [fill in your blank]”.

5:15 | Send Off: What does it mean exactly to welcome you to our community and all the crazy exciting stuff that’s up next.

We also introduce our upcoming IGNITE WEEKEND, an out-of-town challenge to birth a mission-driven venture in 72 hours.

Happy hour and light reception follow.

We look forward to hosting you for an afternoon of discovering and embracing your superpowers!

– Jake, Riva and Andre

…

Seats are limited so we would greatly appreciate your RSVP.

Please complete the RSVP form below and identify which group you belong to.

Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.

Ignite Circle 4 | Sep 2017

It’s our great pleasure to invite you to

IGNITE CIRCLE 4

September 2017 Discernment

A HERO’S JOURNEY: From Doubt & Fear, To Doing What I Was Born To Do.

Every Ignite Circle is different.

That’s because our mix of heroes, stories and super powers, and thus, our serendipities and intersections in each Circle stay different and magical every time.

Just ask our loyal Igniters – some of Manila’s most super heroes who’ve joined every one of our Circles and will be with us again for Ignite 4.

Or, ask more recent Igniters who are now pursuing meaningful collaborations – from advisory boards to projects and venture investment opportunities.

Or, if you prefer data, scroll all the way down for an infographic story of our August Circle – by the numbers.

New Igniter or old, our bond will always be:

DO WHAT YOU WERE BORN TO DO IN THE COMPANY OF OTHERS WHO ARE DOING WHAT THEY WERE BORN TO DO.

…

Are you a relentless high achiever with a sense that your best is yet to come?

Do you have a passion you could embrace as your life’s work, as if your whole life led to it?

Would you like to embark on the greatest journey of your life, where your greatest joy meets the world’s greatest needs?

Join us for Ignite Circle 4 02 September 2017.

We’re swinging it back to the one and only IBIZA Beach Club BGC.

IGNITE CIRCLE 4
Saturday, 02 September 2017
1:00pm to 6:00pm

IBIZA Beach Club BGC
First Class Lounge

@ The W City Centre
7th Avenue cor 30th Street
Bonifacio Global City

No Registration, No Entry.

12:30 | Check-In: Requires online registration. BYOD (bring your own device) – phone, tablet or laptop with cloud access. This is going to be a transmedia experience like you’ve never had before!

1:30 | Ignite! Not our mother’s usual welcome remarks. We promise you’ll get a kick out of this.

2:00 | Hero’s Journey: A personal framework for Discernment of Gifts – which will point, undeniably, to why you are here on earth and the journey you are called to make.

2:30 | Individual Exercise: Discovering That Slice of Humanity Whose Pains I Am Particularly Gifted to Heal – a piece of the universe meant for you and you alone.

3:00 | Breakout Session: Exchange Gifts.

4:00 | Pitch Your Purpose: Ignite alumni share their life’s work – and invite kindred spirits to jump in.

4:45 | Plenary Sharing: I want to meet someone who is passionate about [fill in your blank].

5:45 | Send Off: Take the next steps in your Journey and learn how you can get help all along the way.

Happy hour and dinner follow.

We look forward to hosting you for an afternoon of discovering and embracing your superpowers!

– Jake, Riva and Andre

…

Seats are limited so we would greatly appreciate your RSVP.

Note: Ibiza dinner and drinks are for each attendee’s account. Feel free to invite friends from 6pm on.

Please complete the RSVP form below and identify which group you belong to.

Founders Circle 3 | August 2017

It’s our great pleasure to invite you to

FOUNDERS CIRCLE 3

August 2017 Discernment:

HERO’S JOURNEY: AM I CALLED TO BE A FOUNDER

(and how is this different from being an entrepreneur)?

…

Are you a relentless high achiever with a sense that your best is yet to come?

Do you have a passion you could embrace as your life’s work, as if your whole life led to it?

Have you met a pain you are especially gifted (and compelled!) to heal – a problem so pervasive many would be willing to pay for a solution (or pay much for a solution)?

Would you like to embark on the greatest journey of your life, where your greatest joy meets the world’s greatest needs?

…

If your answer to these questions is YES, YES, YES, chances are you are called to be a Founder (not just an entrepreneur).

Join us for Ignite Founders Circle 3 on 05 August 2017 and find answers to these burning questions:

Am I called to be a Founder (and how is this different from being an entrepreneur)?
How do I take next steps – whether I am well on the way or just beginning – in my Founder’s Journey?
Where and how do I find the all-important people who will journey with me all along my way as Founder?

FOUNDERS CIRCLE 3
Saturday, 05 August 2017
1:00pm to 6:00pm
Happy hour and light reception follows

5th floor
First Pacific Hall
Rizal Library
Ateneo de Manila University

No Registration, No Entry.

1:00 | Check-In: Requires online registration. BYOD (bring your own device) – phone, tablet or laptop with cloud access. This is going to be a transmedia experience like you’ve never had before!

1:30 | Ignite! Not our mother’s usual welcome remarks. We promise you’ll get a kick out of this.

2:00 | Hero’s Journey: A personal framework for the Discernment of Gifts – which will point, undeniably, to why you are here on earth and the journey you are called to make.

2:30 | Individual Exercise: Discovering That Slice of Humanity Whose Pains I Am Particularly Gifted to Heal – a piece of the universe meant for you and you alone.

3:00 | Breakout Session: Exchange Gifts.

4:00 | Plenary Sharing: I want to meet someone who is passionate about [fill in your blank].

5:00 | Send Off: Take the next steps into your Founders Journey and learn how you can get help all along the way.

Happy hour and light reception follows.

We look forward to hosting you for an afternoon of discovering and embracing your superpowers!

– Andre, Riva and Jake

…

Please complete the RSVP form below and identify which group you belong to.

About Ignite Founders Circle

How do we ignite founders? By gathering high achievers, helping them envision the fuller extent of their superpowers and showing them a path to fulfilling their greatest potential, far beyond what they ever imagined.

Once ignited, we partner with founders to build and invest in transcendent ventures.

Founders Circle 1 was about Love Story: how being a Founder taught us love and compassion.

Founders Circle 2 the talk was all about the Filipino Unicorn and the founders who would birth the first billion-dollar Filipino startup.

Founders Circle 2 | May 2017

It’s our great pleasure to invite you to

FOUNDERS CIRCLE 2

May 2017 Discernment:

IN SEARCH OF THE FILIPINO UNICORN – OR SOMETHING MORE?

Can we chart a path to what has so far been an impossible dream: the first billion-dollar Filipino startup to impact humanity on a global scale?

By Unicorns, we mean ventures that have (a) built up billion-dollar valuations by (b) delivering breakthrough solutions that address big problems while (c) operating sustainable business models that allow efficient scale.

…

Is this even the right goal, the Filipino Unicorn? Or are there smarter alternatives to maximize the potential for PH founders and investors?

You might agree, disagree or throw many things in between. Indeed, we raise some controversial questions among our 10+ talk points below. Let’s dive into an afternoon of honest talk, get to know each other and see where and how we might collaborate.

Wayne Silby, grand daddy of impact investing and founder of $15 Billion impact investment fund manager the Calvert Group and Social Venture Network, joined us for Founders Circle 1.

Founders Circle 2
Saturday, 06 May 2017
1:30pm to 6:00pm
Ibiza Beach Club BGC
First Class Lounge

@ The W City Centre
7th Avenue cor 30th Street
Bonifacio Global City

1:30 | Registration

2:15 | Welcome Remarks: Let’s get the right mix of founders and investors in the room. Then let’s dive into an afternoon of honest talk using a mix of plenary and breakout sessions.

2:30 | Plenary: At Ignite Founders, it is our core belief that the vision, imagination, execution and character required to build the first Filipino Unicorn depend squarely on a founder’s capacity for transcendence. But what is transcendence? We’ll define it as jump-off for the breakout sessions.

3:00 | Breakout Sessions: Small group discussions re talk points below. Beware the points of controversy.

3:45| Panel + Open Talk: We come together, compare notes and have an open discussion re talk points below.

5:30| Closing Remarks: A call to Ignite Founders and what it means in terms of programs and milestones thru 2025.

6:00| Happy hour and dinner at Ibiza Beach Club BGC.

Big is an apt word for our FC2 host: the 1,000-seat Ibiza Beach Club. You’ve never seen anything like it. The sheer audacity of its vision, imagination and execution will lead you to believe that Ibiza Beach Club is another of a long and seemingly endless line of Filipino imports.

Wrong! In fact, IBC is 100% Filipino, a 2012 startup of Cebuano founder Manny Osmeña and now in partnership with a group of completely homegrown investors. IBC BGC, along with IBC Mactan, are but opening salvos of Manny O’s visionary journey as he builds IBC into a global franchise renowned for its one-of-a-kind tour de force dining and entertainment experience. Like Hard Rock Cafe, but Ibiza!

10+ TALK POINTS FOR BREAKOUTS + PLENARY

Can we see the “Bigness” picture? The point of the Filipino Unicorn is neither the billion-dollar valuation, nor global scale per se. This is not about blind ambition and size. But it is about Bigness – the capacity to think big and execute big, to focus on solutions that impact the world’s biggest problems while building sustainable business models that allow efficient scale.

What will it take to birth this first Filipino Unicorn? Where will this founder come from? In what sectors are they most likely to rise? What kind of values and skills will define this founder above all? What kind of support and ecosystem does this founder need? What do we need to change, add or delete in the PH startup scene circa 2017 in order to birth this unicorn by 2025?
The Big Three. Can you identify up to 3 problem statements that describe your best bets as to where the biggest venture opportunities are that are likely to give rise to the first Filipino Unicorn (billion-dollar ventures that deliver breakthrough solutions to the world’s biggest problems while operating sustainable business models that allow efficient scale)? Avoid labels; be descriptive. Instead of saying “machine learning”, you might propose the problem statement as: “how to apply machine learning to offer personalized educational choices for learners 5 to 95 years old.”
Get Personal. Consider the afore-mentioned problem statements in the context of your own life experience. What has the universe has tossed your way? Which, of all the world’s endless burning pains, are you most connected with? Get in touch with the problems and opportunities you’re most intimate with in your slice of humanity. These may be concerns of organizations or individuals. Would this personal connection change your mix of afore-mentioned problem statements?
Finding Founders. Select your final problem statement and consider these follow-up questions: what kind of founder would be needed to build a solution around this problem statement? What are the top 3 qualities of this founder? Where is such a founder likely to be found i.e., in what industries, or what type of organizations? At what point in their careers would they be? What key resources would this founder need to maximize the opportunity?
Do we need to dig deeper? What is the role of transcendence – of mission, meaning, purpose and values – throughout the journey of starting something from zero that has never been done before? What is the role of transcendence in shaping vision, imagination, strategy, execution, iteration, evolution, pivot, courage, resilience, persistence and humility – all the strengths we need in a founder?
Founders vs. Entrepreneurs. What’s the difference? Do we have enough, too little or too much of either and what is the impact on PH startups?
Too much of this? Do we have too many me-too ideas or too many techies, geeks and startup junkies attracting techies, geeks and startup junkies and creating an incestuous cycle of inbred ideas and perspectives that aren’t well grounded on mainstream experiences having to do with the world’s big problems?
Too little of this? On the flip side, do we have enough of our best hearts and minds turned onto solving the world’s biggest and most serious problems via startups? Or do we have too many of them pursuing sub-optimal paths in big buraeucratic corporations that leave little room for breakthrough innovations?
Can we nurture founders? Can these seemingly divergent paths be reconciled to ignite a more potent mix in our PH startup scene? Can me-too people be turned on and nurtured into more mission-driven founders? Can our best and brightest who are trapped in corporate life be turned on to their inner entrepreneur and nurtured into would-be founders?
Invest in people, really? We always say in the venture space that it’s all about people, it’s all about founders. But are we doing enough to really understand, attract and nurture the right types of founders? Can a more serious take on finding, building up and investing in founders finally lead us to the first Filipino Unicorn?
Finding Founders: Where, specifically, is the first Filipino Unicorn likely to come from? In what sectors – i.e., industries, verticals or founder backgrounds? Why are these sectors particularly promising for PH startups? Where are the promising channels, or fishing grounds, for finding founders?
Who else? How can we nurture more founders among women, LGBT, Gen Xers, even boomers, and surely more experienced professionals? This is not diversity for diversity’s sake. It can’t be healthy that our startups are populated by techies, geeks and startup junkies who attract techies, geeks and startup junkies in said incestuous cycle and inbred ideas. Converesely, we need more founders who have meaningful experience or personal insight into the world’s most pressing problems – because they’ve actually been in the fray.
What else? What about structural and cultural issues. Do we need more of the right kind of angel and venture capital investors? Is the viable pathway the one that travels the much-celebrated venture capital rounds or do revenue-first and good old cash flow present more tenable ways forward? Is the local startup process and discipline wanting? Do we lack appreciation for what it takes to envision and execute bigger ideas? Is it a lack of talent and horsepower so we can surround founders with the right team? If we found the founders, what else in terms of resources do we need to surround them with?

Always the central theme of every Founders Circle: Love Story.

IGNITE FOUNDERS CIRCLES

Bi-monthly discernment circles for founders, by founders – with investors and others partners in building transcendent ventures

Complementary and by invitation only.

Seats are limited so we would greatly appreciate your RSVP.

Note: Ibiza dinner and drinks are for each attendee’s account. Feel free to invite friends from 6pm on.

Thank you and see you in Founders Circle!

– Andre & Audrey of Ignite Founders

Founders Circle 1 | April 2017

Four hours of our 01 April 2017 Founders Circle summed up in two words:

Or a song. To remind us how mission and purpose feel when “it fits”.

Thanks to all the founders, investors and kindred spirits who joined us. Following is a photo essay of Founders Circle 1. Watch out for Audrey’s reflections here. And mark the date: FC2 will be Saturday, 6 May 2017.

Four hours just blew by at our founders fishbowl!

Great conversations all along the way.

Begin with an end in mind and a roadmap how to get there…

…and trust Purpose to help us iterate, evolve, pivot and keep the faith all along the way.

What an honor to have Wayne Silby, grand daddy of impact investing and founder of Social Venture Network!

Volenday’s Julio Endara and Tao/CashCash’s Fred Levy improving Spanish-French relations.

Bloomberg’s Quintin Pastrana has Georgia Perrine’s back.

Ignite Founders’ Audrey Arayata and Venteny’s Junichiro Waide.

The Prophet of Boom Dr. Bernie Villegas surrounded by the signs of the times.

Healthcare founder Marty Mills making a point (he always is) with Dr. Jac Angeles

Investors Kieran Martin and Matt Kolling and super founder Fred Levy working on US-French relations.

Global Acumen fellow, Yellowboat founder and now AR/VR entrepreneur Jay Jaboneta causing trouble again.

Jinx Dy, Gerry Roque and Michael Hsu prove that 3 > 2.

Jay and Gear Fajardo, first couple of Manila’s startup scene!

Former executive and now executive coach Tony Galvez, Neuropsych Dr. Carla Pineda, Finance prof and startup CEO James Kang, Edu entrepreneur Clifton Esteban.

ExceptOne’s Rhodora and Jojo Fresnedi lending their genius and getting us started on the road to shared transcendence.

Jojo on Discovering Purpose

No copying. And yet it’s not funny. How many people are clueless and living everybody else’s “purpose” but theirs…

Giants in their fields reflecting on purpose. Anton Diaz of Our Awesome Planet and Wayne Silby of Calvert and Social Ventures Network.

A tale of two cities. The stakes are the same today as in Dickens’ 1850s London.

We talked about factories for industrial-scale inspiration, the evolution of human beings into media beings, mad scientist labs and paying the price for choosing the path of purpose over the easy path…

…and how they all led to a movement, and possibly the first actionable vision of the Filipino for the Filipino by the Filipino.

Double rainbow greeted us for our post-circle happy hour, dinner and rockeoke. Lots of deep and lasting connections as we ended past 2am!

The Key Takeaway:

That’s how we caught it from our end. We’d love for you to use the comment section (scroll below) to add your highlights, photos and key takeaways.

See you in Founders Circle 2!

Original invite below

It’s our great pleasure to invite you to

FOUNDERS CIRCLE 1

April 2017 Discernment:

ARE WE GIVING THE FULLNESS OF OUR GIFTS IN THE SERVICE OF OTHERS?

We ask this question twice. First, of ourselves as individuals; then, of the organizations we lead. Our answers lead us closer, everyday closer, to fulfilling our greatest potential – for shareholder value, for societal impact, for joy and meaning.

And we’re betting (well, investing) that out of this will emerge the first Filipino unicorn – the first billion-dollar Filipino company – that will impact humanity on a global scale.

Saturday, 01 April 2017
12:30pm to 5:00pm
Ateneo de Manila University
Loyola Heights, QC
3/F Room 303-304
John Gokongwei School of Management

12:30 | Registration

12:50 | Welcome Remarks

01:00 | Discerning Purpose: A guided personal exercise, followed by breakouts and a plenary reflection.

Let’s explore Discernment as a kind of “operating system” for vision, values, courage, resilience, impact, success, ultimately for joy and meaning.

03:30 | Founders Fishbowl: Open talk with 5 founders on their ongoing journey of mission, meaning and purpose and its foundational link to building breakthrough ventures.

Some of our founders talk openly about God; others don’t buy religion. What we share is an inner well that embraces a purpose increasingly bigger than ourselves.

04:30 | A Call to Ignite Founders: We share our mission and roadmap to build up founders who will build transcendent ventures.

We confront this pragmatic challenge and propose a landmark vision: can we build by 2025 the first billion-dollar Filipino company that impacts humanity at a global scale?

04:50 | Closing Remarks.

Founders-style happy hour and salu-salo follows in La Vista 5 minutes away.

IGNITE FOUNDERS CIRCLES

Bi-monthly discernment circles for founders, by founders – with investors, advisers and others partners in building transcendent ventures

Complementary and by invitation only.

Seats are limited so we would greatly appreciate your RSVP.

Thank you and see you in Founders Circle!

– Andre & Audrey of Ignite Founders

Category Archives: Circles

IGNITE CIRCLE 8 | JULY 2018

You are not here by accident. We’ve searched Manila far and wide and have reason to believe you are one of us. Here’s one way to find out. [PLEASE UPDATE COLLAGE USING PHOTOS THAT SHOW A) A BIGGER EXPANSE OF ATTENDEES […]

You are not here by accident.

We’ve searched Manila far and wide and have reason to believe you are one of us.

Here’s one way to find out.

[PLEASE UPDATE COLLAGE USING PHOTOS THAT SHOW A) A BIGGER EXPANSE OF ATTENDEES (I.E., WIDER ANGLE SHOTS), B) A BROADER DIVERSITY OF SENIOR EXECS TO YOUNG UNS, AND C) HAPPY, ENGAGED, ACTIVE PEOPLE]

We are CEOs, we are founders, we are investors, we are in corporate, we are in startups, we are in non-profits, we might even be in government, we are seasoned professionals, we are just starting out, we are born and bred in Manila, we are new to Manila, we believe in God, we don’t believe in god. We come from all walks – a diversity rarely seen here, but what makes us kindred spirits is the flame that burns within.

[PLACE VIDEO HERE WITH APPROPRIATE SPACING]

Here’s a peg from Steve Jobs of the flame we seek to ignite.

Do you have a restlessness that always makes a difference, yet the sense that your best is still to come?

Do you have a passion you could embrace as your life’s work, as if your whole life led to it?

Have you met a pain you are especially gifted (and compelled!) to heal? A problem so pervasive its solution could well birth the first Filipino unicorn – the first billion-dollar Filipino company to impact humanity and matter on a global scale?

Would you like to embark on the greatest journey of your life, where your greatest joy meets the world’s greatest needs – and take many others with you?

A very different kind of Silicon Valley needs to rise when one of the world’s hottest economies also hosts one of its most promising but oh-so-broken demographics.


[ABOVE COLLAGE IS OK, NICE TINT. LET'S JUST UPDATE DATE AND CIRCLE VIII]

IGNITE CIRCLE VIII
Saturday, 21 July 2018
12:00 pm Onwards

Venue Details: 
B1 Townhall (ABCD)
The Globe Tower
32nd St. corner 7th Ave.
Bonifacio Global City, Taguig

No Registration, No Entry.

What to expect in an Ignite Circle?

12:00 | Check-In: Requires online RSVP. BYOD (bring your own device) – phone, tablet or laptop with cloud access. IGNITE is a transmedia experience like you’ve never had before!

12:45 | Ignite! Gong sounds 3x – it’s time to jumpstart our circle with a visioning-presencing experience, followed by a short, powerful film, out of which we declare the Ignite Manifesto.

You’ve likely never heard anything like it. From here, we take you on an afternoon-long experience that will convince you, or disturb, that maybe you are one of us.

1:30 | Personal Discerment A group exercise journeyed alone. What ignites your deepest joy? What ignites your greatest compassion? Where do these flames intersect? Who else might be journeying on that same path?

2:30 | Pieces of the Puzzle Personal discernment meets courageous conversation meets performance art: each of us holds literally a piece of the puzzle. We thereby shape, expand, and reshape a collective force that takes on the evolving movements of our individual parts.

4:00 | Breakout We process what just happened and where we can take them going forward.

5:00 | Send Off We wrap up with a vision of possibilities and potential next steps – plus a surprise ending helped along by a healthy dose of algorithm wrapped in an individual Gift Box for each Igniter.

…

Happy hour, socials, and light reception follow until 9pm. Snacks and coffee will be provided throughout the Circle.

…

We look forward to seeing you for Ignite Circle VIII! Here’s to the crazy ones!

– Ignite Corps ’18

…

Seats are free, but limited so we would greatly appreciate your RSVP below.

Visit Past Ignite Circle

IGNITE xCHANGE | Apr 2018

You’re invited to one of Manila’s most curated gatherings. Find out why. IGNITE xCHANGE II The Wicked Labs Series MEGA MANILA 2020: THE FUTURE OF LEARNING, WORK, AND MAXIMIZING HUMAN POTENTIAL […]

You’re invited to one of Manila’s most curated gatherings. Find out why.

IGNITE xCHANGE II

The Wicked Labs Series

MEGA MANILA 2020: THE FUTURE OF LEARNING, WORK, AND MAXIMIZING HUMAN POTENTIAL

Plus a major announcement coming out of Ignite xChange I.

Rise and shine to Manila’s greater Silicon Valley. Yes, Manila. We’re not the world’s second most populous city for nothing (behind Tokyo’s 33MM, ahead of NYC’s 17MM).

Every day in our bustling metropolis of 24,000,000, we wake to a laboratory-full of the world’s most wicked problems.

Which puts us in pole position to solve them. We enjoy a massive advantage being so up-close and personal to a whole biodiversity of the world’s most pressing problems, and thus, to a universe of innovations – if we cared enough to solve them.

Manila’s store of wicked problems holds a torrent of potential unicorns, billion-dollar innovations that impact humanity and matter on a global scale

– if we cared enough to solve them.

This is what every IGNITE xCHANGE is about.

We ignite compassion and fan the flames of our inimitable brand of innovation.

Here’s how:

1. We focus on one of Manila’s wicked problems. In this case: the future of learning, work, and maximizing human potential.

2. We gather 50 of Manila’s bright minds, restless spirits, and experienced hands from a diversity of sectors in and around our defined space. Diversity is key. Among us, we will have luminaries in economics, urban planning, architecture, design, construction, finance, insurance, leasing, home furnishings, consumer durables, home maintenance and repair, security, lifestyle, health, education, entertainment, etc. And we will be right alongside innovators who are pushing the envelope in fields like collaborative consumption and the sharing economy, artificial intelligence, smart devices and internet of things, med tech and home healthcare, edutech, fintech, etc.

3. We use experience-design thinking to create an exhilarating mix of exchanges – from expert sharings directly from the battlefield, to game-enhanced breakouts and plenaries – we challenge ourselves to identify the most viable opportunities to innovate in our defined space. Solutions are always great, but when the paradigm itself is broken, we push the envelope and challenge our xCHANGERS to re-imagine a wholly different future and how to make it happen.

4. As your hosts for every IGNITE xCHANGE, we make sure the flow of energy and ideas continues beyond the day of. We extend the experience through transmedia platforms that sustain continuing exchange and realtime updates on ongoing collaborations and how our community is acting on the mix of ideas and energy exchanged.

5. Finally, we invest and execute on the best fruits of our IGNITE xCHANGE, opening the door and facilitating collaboration for those of us who want to participate. When a viable innovation opportunity emerges, we commit resources to nurture and pursue innovation: from idea, to design and prototype, through rapid ready-fire-aim MVP (Minimum Viable Product) sprints that test and bring innovations to market in 6-month commitments.

And for you, this added thrill of discovery:

Of all the people we could have chosen, WHY YOU?

What is it in you that could be, with all of us, a force for innovation?

…..

Every IGNITE experience proceeds from this same core belief:

That we Ignite, not just for self, but for each other. Because what we are born to do, we are born to do with others. We need each other’s Genius. And far beyond Genius, we need each other to be on this journey, to fulfill this necessary progression: from Genius, to Purpose and Mission, to Collaboration, and ultimately, to Innovation and Impact.

This is how we lift each other to heights we never in our wildest dreams, or loftiest ambitions, dared.

Full IGNITE MANIFESTO below.

IGNITE xCHANGE I
Saturday, 10 March 2018
1:00-5:00 pm

Happy hour and light reception follow.

Manila's top bartender 
will be mixing up UNGAVA, 
6 different arctic botanicals 
that make up one of 
the best gins in town!

CAMERON FORBES
MANILA POLO CLUB

McKinley Road,
Forbes Park,
Makati City



Seats are free, but limited.
We would greatly appreciate 
your RSVP below.

We hope you will join us for this very different take on problem-solving, innovation and venture capital.

– Andre Yap on behalf of Ignite Corps ’18

RSVP REQUIRED:

IGNITE MANIFESTO

At Ignite, we know these to be true:

First, that I am gifted with my own Genius – unique, unrepeated and unrepeatable for all time.

Second, that my singular Genius bears the thumbprint of Who I Am and Why I am Here. Genius points to Purpose, Purpose to Genius.

Third, that I can only give out of what I have been given. And what I have been given, I must give and live for others. Genius finds its fullness in a Purpose bigger than self.

Fourth, that if I am honest and brave, my Genius and Purpose will find their manifest call in a shared Mission – with others, for others. A Mission rooted in finding that particular slice of humanity whose particular pains I am particularly gifted (and compelled!) to heal.

Fifth, that this shared Mission leads naturally to Collaboration, and ultimately, to Innovation. Shared Mission demands Shared Genius: mine, yours, ours. If we are a collection of our own Genius – each unique, unrepeated, unrepeatable – where can we go, but to Innovation.

…

We Ignite, therefore, not just for self, but for each other. Because what we are born to do, we are born to do with others. We need each other’s Genius. And far beyond Genius, we need each other to be on this journey, to fulfill the necessary progression: from Genius, to Purpose and Mission, to Collaboration, and ultimately, to Innovation and Impact.

This is the path of transcendence. This is how we lift each other to heights we never in our wildest dreams, or loftiest ambitions, dared

www.ignitegifts.com

Do what you were born to do in the company of others who are doing what they were born to do

IGNITE xCHANGE I | Mar 2018

You’re invited to one of Manila’s most curated gatherings. Find out why. IGNITE xCHANGE I The Wicked Labs Series RADICAL INNOVATIONS WE CAN PURUSE TODAY TO VASTLY RE-IMAGINE MANILA’S HOME DWELLING […]

You’re invited to one of Manila’s most curated gatherings. Find out why.

IGNITE xCHANGE I

The Wicked Labs Series

RADICAL INNOVATIONS WE CAN PURUSE TODAY TO VASTLY RE-IMAGINE MANILA’S HOME DWELLING OF TOMORROW.

What if the future were in our hands. (Oh, but we will show you it is!)

Rise and shine to Manila’s greater Silicon Valley. Yes, Manila. We’re not the world’s second most populous city for nothing (behind Tokyo’s 33MM, ahead of NYC’s 17MM).

Everyday in our bustling metropolis of 24,000,000, we wake to a laboratory-full of the world’s most wicked problems.

Which puts us in pole position to solve them. We enjoy a massive advantage being so up-close and personal to a whole biodiversity of the world’s most pressing problems, and thus, to a universe of innovations – if we cared enough to solve them.

Manila’s store of wicked problems holds a torrent of potential unicorns, billion-dollar innovations that impact humanity and matter on a global scale

– if we cared enough to solve them.

This is what every IGNITE xCHANGE is about.

We ignite compassion and fan the flames of our inimitable brand of innovation.

Here’s how:

1. We focus on one of Manila’s wicked problems.

In this case: urban home dwelling, projected to grow 50% through 2021, driven primarily by the middle-income segment. It’s not a problem per se, but massive changes are happening and it will all converge on home sweet home. Quality of life is degrading at an accelerating pace at the same time as massive demographic, socio-economic, and behavioral shifts are changing the fabric and flow of everyday life. Try mixing all these up in a wicked stew: traffic, pollution, over-burdened infrastructure, continued abuse of meager-to-non-existent urban planning, a growing middle class composed of younger, more mobile workforce that’s marrying later and having less kids, while being disproportionately concentrated in sectors (e.g., BPO and its related sectors) that are under threat from technological shifts (e.g., AI), growing income gaps and numbers of un- and under-employed, etc.

All these converge at home. Home is where the heart is, and in our view, the experience of home dwelling is rife for innovation today, rife for re-imagining today, so we can build a better life for tomorrow.

2. We gather 50 of Manila’s bright minds, restless spirits, and experienced hands from a diversity of sectors in and around our defined space. Diversity is key. Among us, we will have luminaries in economics, urban planning, architecture, design, construction, finance, insurance, leasing, home furnishings, consumer durables, home maintenance and repair, security, lifestyle, health, education, entertainment, etc. And we will be right alongside innovators who are pushing the envelope in fields like collaborative consumption and the sharing economy, artificial intelligence, smart devices and internet of things, med tech and home healthcare, edutech, fintech, etc.

3. We use experience-design thinking to create an exhilarating mix of exchanges – from 10×6 expert sharings (10 experts, 6 minutes each) directly from their respective battlefields, to game-enhanced breakouts and plenaries – we challenge ourselves to identify the most viable opportunities to innovate in our defined space. Solutions are always great, but when the paradigm itself is broken, we push the envelope and challenge our xCHANGERS to re-imagine a wholly different future and how to make it happen.

4. As your hosts for every IGNITE xCHANGE, we make sure the flow of energy and ideas continues beyond the day of. We extend the experience through transmedia platforms that sustain continuing exchange and realtime updates on ongoing collaborations and how our community is acting on the mix of ideas and energy exchanged.

5. Finally, we invest and execute on the best fruits of our IGNITE xCHANGE, opening the door and facilitating collaboration for those of us who want to participate. When a viable innovation opportunity emerges, we commit resources to nurture and pursue innovation: from idea, to design and prototype, through rapid ready-fire-aim MVP (Minimum Viable Product) sprints that test and bring innovations to market in 6-month commitments.

And for you, this added thrill of discovery:

Of all the people we could have chosen, WHY YOU?

What is it in you that could be, with all of us, a force for innovation?

…..

Every IGNITE experience proceeds from this same core belief:

That we Ignite, not just for self, but for each other. Because what we are born to do, we are born to do with others. We need each other’s Genius. And far beyond Genius, we need each other to be on this journey, to fulfill this necessary progression: from Genius, to Purpose and Mission, to Collaboration, and ultimately, to Innovation and Impact.

This is how we lift each other to heights we never in our wildest dreams, or loftiest ambitions, dared.

Full IGNITE MANIFESTO below.

IGNITE xCHANGE I
Saturday, 10 March 2018
1:00-5:00 pm

Manila Polo Club



Seats are free, but limited.
We would greatly appreciate 
your RSVP below.

We hope you will join us for this very different take on problem-solving, innovation and venture capital.

– Andre Yap on behalf of Ignite Corps ’18

RSVP Required.

IGNITE MANIFESTO

At Ignite, we know these to be true:

First, that I am gifted with my own Genius – unique, unrepeated and unrepeatable for all time.

Second, that my singular Genius bears the thumbprint of Who I Am and Why I am Here. Genius points to Purpose, Purpose to Genius.

Third, that I can only give out of what I have been given. And what I have been given, I must give and live for others. Genius finds its fullness in a Purpose bigger than self.

Fourth, that if I am honest and brave, my Genius and Purpose will find their manifest call in a shared Mission – with others, for others. A Mission rooted in finding that particular slice of humanity whose particular pains I am particularly gifted (and compelled!) to heal.

Fifth, that this shared Mission leads naturally to Collaboration, and ultimately, to Innovation. Shared Mission demands Shared Genius: mine, yours, ours. If we are a collection of our own Genius – each unique, unrepeated, unrepeatable – where can we go, but to Innovation.

…

We Ignite, therefore, not just for self, but for each other. Because what we are born to do, we are born to do with others. We need each other’s Genius. And far beyond Genius, we need each other to be on this journey, to fulfill the necessary progression: from Genius, to Purpose and Mission, to Collaboration, and ultimately, to Innovation and Impact.

This is the path of transcendence. This is how we lift each other to heights we never in our wildest dreams, or loftiest ambitions, dared

IGNITE 21 | Feb 2018

We chose you for this special invite IGNITE 21, CHAPTER I A THURSDAY AFTERNOON RETREAT FOR A LIFETIME OF YOUR GREATEST IMPACT, IGNITED! By invite only. Max […]

We chose you for this special invite

IGNITE 21, CHAPTER I

A THURSDAY AFTERNOON RETREAT FOR A LIFETIME OF YOUR GREATEST IMPACT, IGNITED!

By invite only. Max 21 Igniters.

Give a man fish and feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and feed him for a lifetime.

Shall we exchange gifts? Share a Thursday afternoon of your life and we will share one of life’s great treasures. We call it:

THE IGNITE TUG-OF-LOVE

A Lifelong Framework and Practice for Unleashing your Greatest Genius, Purpose, and Impact. You will learn how to make this real in your daily life, and in the people around you:

My Genius bears the thumbprint of Who I am and Why I am here. Genius points to Purpose, Purpose to Genius. The more I live my Purpose, the more I find my Genius; and the more I embrace my greater and greater Genius, the more I am revealed my greater and greater Purpose.

This is the path of transcendence. This is how we lift each other to heights we never in our wildest dreams, or loftiest ambitions, dared.

Let’s spend the afternoon together, 21 kindred sprits, learning to unleash, unleash, and keep unleashing our boundless Genius, Purpose and Impact for the rest of our lives.

IGNITE 21, CHAPTER I
Thursday, 22 February 2018
1:30 - 5:30 pm

DISCOVERY PRIMEA 
6749 AYALA AVENUE

Here's a visual preview 
of the Ignite 21 experience...

Cozy nooks in marble and deep walnut
– for small group sharings…

Exclusive use of a magical space lost in time
– for our plenaries and breakouts. Plus a
surprise setting for alone-time reflection…

Happy hour and socials await us post- Retreat. Plus the company of Igniters who weren’t part of our 21.

We cap it off with dinner and fellowship
at one of Manila’s top spots!

PHP 2,100.00*
includes 
Dinner Fellowship 
@ Flame Restaurant



Limited to 21 Igniters. 
By Invitation Only. 
First come, first served. 
RSVP required.

* We take pride in this. 
Of 30+ iconic events in 2018, 
IGNITE 21 is the rare one 
where we charge a fee.

RSVP REQUIRED:

I will join you for Ignite 21. Please reserve my spot!
I can’t join you this time, but please invite me for the next Ignite 21.
I’m not up for this. I’d rather not get an invite again.

– Ignite Corps ’18

www.ignitegifts.com

Do what you were born to do in the company of others who are doing what they were born to do.

IGNITE CIRCLE 6 | Feb 2018

You are not here by accident. Someone saw something in you. We’ve searched Manila far and wide and have reason to believe you are one of us. Here’s one way to find out. IGNITE CIRCLE VI […]

You are not here by accident.

Someone saw something in you. We’ve searched Manila far and wide and have reason to believe you are one of us.

Here’s one way to find out.

IGNITE CIRCLE VI

AN AFTERNOON OF EXPERIENTIAL DISCERNMENT:

OF MISFITS, REBELS, AND A FOMENTING MOVEMENT

It ignites in these Circles, then rambles on, like a rampaging, irrepressible wild fire. A force for innovation/collaboration (they’re necessary flipsides) rarely seen in Manila. A fomenting movement to match the lab full of wicked challenges 103,000,000 of us endure daily.

Here’s a peg from Steve Jobs of the flame we seek to ignite.

Ignite Circle 1 was born April Fools Day 2017. We started as a handful of crazies jumping off the plane and building the IGNITE parachute on the hurtle down. Ready, fire, aim. Growing from Circle to Circle to now more than a few hundred of Manila’s restless spirits, we confront these questions as we bring more and more kindreds to each Circle:

Do you have a restlessness that always makes a difference, yet the sense that your best is still to come?

Do you have a passion you could embrace as your life’s work, as if your whole life led to it?

Have you met a pain you are especially gifted (and compelled!) to heal – a problem so pervasive its solution could well birth the first Filipino unicorn?

Would you like to embark on the greatest journey of your life, where your greatest joy meets the world’s greatest needs – and take many others with you?

Is that a yes, yes, yes, YES!

Allow us to share what we’re doing about it – how, when, where, with who – and how might it change the course of history if we dared this mighty thing together.

A very different kind of Silicon Valley needs to rise when one of the world’s hottest economies also hosts one of its most promising but oh so broken demographics.

Join us for the all-new

IGNITE CIRCLE VI
Saturday, 03 February 2018
12:00 pm Onward

Unilab Bayanihan Center
JY Campos Hall
8008 Pioneer Street
Mandaluyong City


No Registration, No Entry.

12:00 | Check-In: Requires online RSVP. BYOD (bring your own device) – phone, tablet or laptop with cloud access. IGNITE is a transmedia experience like you’ve never had before!

1:00 | Ignite! Gong sounds 3x at 1pm sharp. Time to jumpstart our all-new Ignite Circle VI with a visioning-presencing experience, followed by a short, powerful film viewing, out of which we declare the Ignite Manifesto.

You’ve likely never heard anything like it. From here, we take you on an afternoon-long experience that will convince you, or disturb, that maybe you are one of us.

1:30 | Personal Discerment A group exercise journeyed alone. What ignites your deepest joy? What ignites your greatest compassion? Where do these flames intersect? Who else might be journeying on that same path?

2:30 | Pieces of the Puzzle Personal discernment meets courageous conversation meets performance art: each of us holds literally a piece of the puzzle. We thereby shape, expand, and reshape a collective force that takes on the evolving movements of our individual parts.

4:00 | Breakout We process what just happened…

5:00 | Send Off We wrap up with a vision of possibilities and potential next steps – plus a surprise ending helped along by a healthy dose of algorithm and wrapped in an individual Gift Box for each Igniter.

…

Happy hour, socials, and light reception follow until 9pm. Snacks and coffee will be provided throughout the Circle.

…

We look forward to seeing you for Ignite Circle VI! Here’s to the crazy ones!

– Ignite Corps ’18

…

Seats are free, but limited so we would greatly appreciate your RSVP below.

IGNITE CIRCLE 5 | Oct 2017

It’s our great pleasure to invite you to IGNITE CIRCLE V BOLDLY, WHERE NONE HAVE GONE BEFORE […]

It’s our great pleasure to invite you to

IGNITE CIRCLE V

BOLDLY, WHERE NONE HAVE GONE BEFORE

We mean literally where none have gone before (scroll if you can’t wait!).

But we mean it figuratively too. Steve Jobs was right: the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do. Innovation is never just about the what or the how. It’s about people and purpose: the Who and their Why. And then it’s Who Else – because no one advances humanity alone.

Around here we’re starting to call it

A MOVEMENT:

DO WHAT YOU WERE BORN TO DO IN THE COMPANY OF OTHERS WHO ARE DOING WHAT THEY WERE BORN TO DO.

A Movement that started with a handful of crazies jumping off the plane and building the IGNITE parachute on the hurtle down, growing every month to now more than a few hundred of Manila’s restlessly brilliant spirits – each of us pushing these same powerful questions, as we bring more kindreds to each Circle:

Are you a relentless high achiever with a sense that your best is yet to come?

Do you have a passion you could embrace as your life’s work, as if your whole life led to it?

Have you met a pain you are especially gifted (and compelled!) to heal – a problem so pervasive many would be willing to pay for a solution (or pay much for a solution)?

Would you like to embark on the greatest journey of your life, where your greatest joy meets the world’s greatest needs?

As always, our mix of heroes, superpowers and stories, and thus, our serendipities and intersections in each IGNITE Circle stay different and magical every time.

Join us for Ignite Circle V on 07 October 2017.

We’re thrilled to be one of the first events ever in the Ateneo’s iconic new innovation hub, the Arete!

IGNITE CIRCLE 5
Saturday, 07 October 2017
1:00pm to 6:00pm

THE ARETÊ
EDUARDO J. ABOITIZ SANDBOX ZONE
3RD FLOOR
GEORGE SK TY LEARNING INNOVATION WING
Ateneo de Manila University,
Loyola Heights, QC

No Registration, No Entry.

12:30 | Check-In: Requires online registration. BYOD (bring your own device) – phone, tablet or laptop with cloud access. IGNITE is a transmedia experience like you’ve never had before!

1:30 | Ignite! All new – but still not our mother’s usual welcome remarks. (We leave the welcome for last, as you’ll see).

2:00 | Hero’s Journey: A personal framework for our greatest journey in life – as told live by Igniters in various stages of their journey. Guaranteed to fire us up for what’s next…

3:00 | Personal Discerment of Gifts: Embracing your super powers and that slice of the universe meant for you and you alone.

3:30 | Breakout Session: Exchange Gifts.

4:30 | Birth of a Movement: Starts with your own Gift. Ends with “I’d love to meet someone who is passionate about [fill in your blank]”.

5:15 | Send Off: What does it mean exactly to welcome you to our community and all the crazy exciting stuff that’s up next.

We also introduce our upcoming IGNITE WEEKEND, an out-of-town challenge to birth a mission-driven venture in 72 hours.

Happy hour and light reception follow.

We look forward to hosting you for an afternoon of discovering and embracing your superpowers!

– Jake, Riva and Andre

…

Seats are limited so we would greatly appreciate your RSVP.

Please complete the RSVP form below and identify which group you belong to.

Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.

Ignite Circle 4 | Sep 2017

It’s our great pleasure to invite you to IGNITE CIRCLE 4 […]

It’s our great pleasure to invite you to

IGNITE CIRCLE 4

September 2017 Discernment

A HERO’S JOURNEY: From Doubt & Fear, To Doing What I Was Born To Do.

Every Ignite Circle is different.

That’s because our mix of heroes, stories and super powers, and thus, our serendipities and intersections in each Circle stay different and magical every time.

Just ask our loyal Igniters – some of Manila’s most super heroes who’ve joined every one of our Circles and will be with us again for Ignite 4.

Or, ask more recent Igniters who are now pursuing meaningful collaborations – from advisory boards to projects and venture investment opportunities.

Or, if you prefer data, scroll all the way down for an infographic story of our August Circle – by the numbers.

New Igniter or old, our bond will always be:

DO WHAT YOU WERE BORN TO DO IN THE COMPANY OF OTHERS WHO ARE DOING WHAT THEY WERE BORN TO DO.

…

Are you a relentless high achiever with a sense that your best is yet to come?

Do you have a passion you could embrace as your life’s work, as if your whole life led to it?

Would you like to embark on the greatest journey of your life, where your greatest joy meets the world’s greatest needs?

Join us for Ignite Circle 4 02 September 2017.

We’re swinging it back to the one and only IBIZA Beach Club BGC.

IGNITE CIRCLE 4
Saturday, 02 September 2017
1:00pm to 6:00pm

IBIZA Beach Club BGC
First Class Lounge

@ The W City Centre
7th Avenue cor 30th Street
Bonifacio Global City

No Registration, No Entry.

12:30 | Check-In: Requires online registration. BYOD (bring your own device) – phone, tablet or laptop with cloud access. This is going to be a transmedia experience like you’ve never had before!

1:30 | Ignite! Not our mother’s usual welcome remarks. We promise you’ll get a kick out of this.

2:00 | Hero’s Journey: A personal framework for Discernment of Gifts – which will point, undeniably, to why you are here on earth and the journey you are called to make.

2:30 | Individual Exercise: Discovering That Slice of Humanity Whose Pains I Am Particularly Gifted to Heal – a piece of the universe meant for you and you alone.

3:00 | Breakout Session: Exchange Gifts.

4:00 | Pitch Your Purpose: Ignite alumni share their life’s work – and invite kindred spirits to jump in.

4:45 | Plenary Sharing: I want to meet someone who is passionate about [fill in your blank].

5:45 | Send Off: Take the next steps in your Journey and learn how you can get help all along the way.

Happy hour and dinner follow.

We look forward to hosting you for an afternoon of discovering and embracing your superpowers!

– Jake, Riva and Andre

…

Seats are limited so we would greatly appreciate your RSVP.

Note: Ibiza dinner and drinks are for each attendee’s account. Feel free to invite friends from 6pm on.

Please complete the RSVP form below and identify which group you belong to.

Founders Circle 3 | August 2017

It’s our great pleasure to invite you to FOUNDERS CIRCLE 3 August 2017 Discernment: HERO’S JOURNEY: AM I CALLED TO BE A […]

It’s our great pleasure to invite you to

FOUNDERS CIRCLE 3

August 2017 Discernment:

HERO’S JOURNEY: AM I CALLED TO BE A FOUNDER

(and how is this different from being an entrepreneur)?

…

Are you a relentless high achiever with a sense that your best is yet to come?

Do you have a passion you could embrace as your life’s work, as if your whole life led to it?

Have you met a pain you are especially gifted (and compelled!) to heal – a problem so pervasive many would be willing to pay for a solution (or pay much for a solution)?

Would you like to embark on the greatest journey of your life, where your greatest joy meets the world’s greatest needs?

…

If your answer to these questions is YES, YES, YES, chances are you are called to be a Founder (not just an entrepreneur).

Join us for Ignite Founders Circle 3 on 05 August 2017 and find answers to these burning questions:

Am I called to be a Founder (and how is this different from being an entrepreneur)?
How do I take next steps – whether I am well on the way or just beginning – in my Founder’s Journey?
Where and how do I find the all-important people who will journey with me all along my way as Founder?

FOUNDERS CIRCLE 3
Saturday, 05 August 2017
1:00pm to 6:00pm
Happy hour and light reception follows

5th floor
First Pacific Hall
Rizal Library
Ateneo de Manila University

No Registration, No Entry.

1:00 | Check-In: Requires online registration. BYOD (bring your own device) – phone, tablet or laptop with cloud access. This is going to be a transmedia experience like you’ve never had before!

1:30 | Ignite! Not our mother’s usual welcome remarks. We promise you’ll get a kick out of this.

2:00 | Hero’s Journey: A personal framework for the Discernment of Gifts – which will point, undeniably, to why you are here on earth and the journey you are called to make.

2:30 | Individual Exercise: Discovering That Slice of Humanity Whose Pains I Am Particularly Gifted to Heal – a piece of the universe meant for you and you alone.

3:00 | Breakout Session: Exchange Gifts.

4:00 | Plenary Sharing: I want to meet someone who is passionate about [fill in your blank].

5:00 | Send Off: Take the next steps into your Founders Journey and learn how you can get help all along the way.

Happy hour and light reception follows.

We look forward to hosting you for an afternoon of discovering and embracing your superpowers!

– Andre, Riva and Jake

…

Please complete the RSVP form below and identify which group you belong to.

About Ignite Founders Circle

How do we ignite founders? By gathering high achievers, helping them envision the fuller extent of their superpowers and showing them a path to fulfilling their greatest potential, far beyond what they ever imagined.

Once ignited, we partner with founders to build and invest in transcendent ventures.

Founders Circle 1 was about Love Story: how being a Founder taught us love and compassion.

Founders Circle 2 the talk was all about the Filipino Unicorn and the founders who would birth the first billion-dollar Filipino startup.

Founders Circle 2 | May 2017

It’s our great pleasure to invite you to FOUNDERS CIRCLE 2 May 2017 Discernment: IN SEARCH OF THE FILIPINO UNICORN – OR […]

It’s our great pleasure to invite you to

FOUNDERS CIRCLE 2

May 2017 Discernment:

IN SEARCH OF THE FILIPINO UNICORN – OR SOMETHING MORE?

Can we chart a path to what has so far been an impossible dream: the first billion-dollar Filipino startup to impact humanity on a global scale?

By Unicorns, we mean ventures that have (a) built up billion-dollar valuations by (b) delivering breakthrough solutions that address big problems while (c) operating sustainable business models that allow efficient scale.

…

Is this even the right goal, the Filipino Unicorn? Or are there smarter alternatives to maximize the potential for PH founders and investors?

You might agree, disagree or throw many things in between. Indeed, we raise some controversial questions among our 10+ talk points below. Let’s dive into an afternoon of honest talk, get to know each other and see where and how we might collaborate.

Wayne Silby, grand daddy of impact investing and founder of $15 Billion impact investment fund manager the Calvert Group and Social Venture Network, joined us for Founders Circle 1.

Founders Circle 2
Saturday, 06 May 2017
1:30pm to 6:00pm
Ibiza Beach Club BGC
First Class Lounge

@ The W City Centre
7th Avenue cor 30th Street
Bonifacio Global City