The United States has placed the Pax Silica artificial intelligence hub planned for New Clark City at the top of its economic priorities with the Philippines, Finance Secretary and investment czar Frederick Go said Friday, citing recent talks with newly appointed US Ambassador Lee Lipton.
Pax Silica is a 24-member, US-led initiative meant to secure supply chains for AI and critical minerals among allied economies. The Philippines joined in April, alongside signatories that include the European Union, Japan, India, Singapore, South Korea, and the United Kingdom. Under the initiative, Manila and Washington are building a roughly 1,619-hectare (about 4,000-acre) industrial hub in New Clark City, envisioned as a model site for AI-focused investment.
Three months since the Philippines signed on, the project has moved faster than expected. The site has been identified, and Taiwanese electronics manufacturer Foxconn is conducting due diligence as a possible anchor locator. Go said that if Foxconn commits, it would likely be the largest single investment in the hub, worth billions of dollars and generating thousands of jobs on its own.
Go quoted Lipton as telling him the project carries unusual weight in Washington.
“He’s [Lipton] very keen to make things move fast,” Go said during a media roundtable. “If we’re going to do this, we might as well do it as fast as possible so that we can provide jobs and be a significant player in the technology of the future.”
“On the economic side, the Pax Silica project is on top of the priority list of the American side,” he added.
Go said he is hopeful the Philippines and the United States can sign a definitive framework agreement before the end of the year. That agreement would spell out terms for the site, including lease rates once the two-year grace period granted by the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), the property’s landlord, ends. Asked whether locators at Pax Silica would need incentives beyond what is already available, Go said that the benefits under the Create More Law were sufficient.
BCDA president and CEO Joshua Bingcang has said construction of the hub’s first phase is targeted to begin in 2028.
Go described the project as “generational,” with the potential to create hundreds of thousands of jobs and strengthen the Philippines’ standing in the global technology supply chain. He also pointed to growing competition among Pax Silica member countries for the same pool of high-value technology investment.
“Everybody wants to do this,” Go said. “It’s taxes. It’s revenues for the government. It’s jobs for their citizens. It’s ecosystem improvement.”
For now, the timeline hinges on two milestones: a signed framework agreement this year and confirmation of Foxconn’s participation as anchor locator. Tech Pilipinas will continue tracking developments on both fronts as the Finance Department finalizes the legal and operational groundwork for the hub.
