HighLevel LIVE Manila Recap 2026: Highlights, Speakers & Key Takeaways

: Nicholas Papp
: August 10, 2026

This HighLevel LIVE Manila recap looks back at HighLevel’s biggest event ever, where more than 2,000 agency owners, marketers, entrepreneurs, and automation specialists gathered in Manila to explore the future of AI, agency growth, and the HighLevel platform.

The scale mattered, but the number of people in the room was only part of the story.

What stood out most was the range of people who showed up. Some attendees had been using HighLevel for years. Others were still learning what the platform could do. There were established agency owners, first-time founders, implementation specialists, community leaders, and people exploring how AI and automation could change the way they work.

HighLevel co-founders Shaun Clark, Robin Alex and Varun Vairavan attended alongside speakers including Billy Gene, Cece Tan, Chase Buckner, Chris Dillon, RJ Villamer, Joanna Sherrow, Declan O’Reilly, Matthew Panganiban, Dr. Priya Jaganathan, and Michael Reimer.

Across two days, the agenda covered AI, agency growth, WhatsApp, team development, affiliate systems, high-ticket offers, and the future of HighLevel.

But the event also said something larger about the HighLevel community.

Manila was not treated as a secondary market or a convenient overseas stop. The Philippines was placed at the center of the conversation, and the turnout made it clear why.

HighLevel LIVE Manila Recap at a Glance

Event: HighLevel LIVE Manila 2026

Dates: August 8-9, 2026

Venue: Manila Marriott Hotel at Newport World Resorts, Pasay City, Philippines

Attendance: More than 2,000 people

Featured speakers: Shaun Clark, Robin Alex, Varun Vairavan, Billy Gene, Cece Tan, Chase Buckner, Chris Dillon, RJ Villamer, Joanna Sherrow, Declan O’Reilly, Matthew Panganiban, Dr. Priya Jaganathan, Michael Reimer, and other members of the HighLevel community

Main topics: Artificial intelligence, agency growth, automation, SaaS, marketing, entrepreneurship, team development, and community

HighLevel’s Biggest Event Yet

HighLevel has hosted conferences, workshops, meetups, and community events in different parts of the world, including its flagship LevelUp conference.

Manila surpassed them in attendance.

More than 2,000 people gathered in one place to learn how agencies and businesses are using HighLevel to generate leads, manage customer relationships, automate follow-up, improve service delivery, and build new revenue streams.

That scale reflected how much the ecosystem has expanded.

HighLevel is still widely known as a platform for marketing agencies, but the community surrounding it has become much broader. The people attending HighLevel LIVE Manila included freelancers, SaaS founders, automation experts, virtual assistants, consultants, educators, and business owners from a wide range of industries.

Many had worked together online without ever meeting in person.

The conference gave them a chance to finally sit in the same room, compare notes, and have the conversations that are difficult to reproduce in a Facebook group or on a Zoom call.

For our GHLCentral team, that was one of the most valuable parts of the weekend. We had the opportunity to speak with people at very different stages of their HighLevel journey and hear what they were building, where they were getting stuck, and what they hoped to learn next.

Why Manila Was the Right Location

The Philippines has been part of the HighLevel ecosystem for years.

Many agencies rely on Filipino professionals for customer support, account management, funnel building, automation, design, development, and day-to-day operations. But describing the region only as a source of support talent no longer reflects what is happening.

Filipino HighLevel users are building agencies, launching SaaS offers, training teams, leading communities, consulting with international businesses, and developing specialized expertise across the platform.

Some began as virtual assistants or freelancers and gradually moved into strategy, implementation, leadership, and ownership. Others entered the ecosystem as entrepreneurs from the beginning.

HighLevel LIVE Manila gave those stories a larger stage.

It also gave international attendees a clearer view of the level of skill and business experience already present in the region.

The choice of Manila was therefore more than a geographic decision. It recognized the Philippines as one of the places where the next phase of the HighLevel community is already taking shape.

The Weekend Began with the VIP Gala

Before the main conference opened, Cece Tan hosted a VIP Gala on August 7.

The evening brought speakers, partners, community leaders, and attendees together in a smaller setting before the two-day program began.

That gave people time to reconnect, make introductions, and start conversations without the pace and noise of the main conference.

Cece has played an important role in building the HighLevel community in the Philippines. Her own progression from virtual assistant to SaaS founder reflects the type of opportunity that attracted many people to the event.

The gala provided an appropriate opening to a weekend that would focus heavily on growth, transformation, and what people can build when they gain access to the right tools and support.

Day One: AI, Communication, and Smarter Agency Growth

Day One opened with a practical question: how should agencies and businesses operate as AI becomes more capable?

The sessions did not treat artificial intelligence as a distant trend. They focused on how it is already affecting sales, customer communication, service delivery, team structure, and the types of offers agencies can bring to market.

Billy Gene on the Autonomous Business

Billy Gene opened the program with “The Autonomous Business: How to Run Your Company with A.I. Employees That Think, Sell, and Scale 24/7.”

The session addressed one of the biggest opportunities facing agency owners.

AI can now take on parts of the customer journey that previously required constant manual effort. It can assist with lead response, qualification, appointment booking, follow-up, support, and internal workflows.

That does not mean every process should be handed to AI. It does mean business owners need to take a closer look at where delays, repetitive work, and inconsistent follow-up are costing them money.

For agencies, the opportunity is twofold.

They can use AI to improve their own operations, and they can help clients implement practical AI systems tied to a clear business result.

The second opportunity may be the more significant one. Most business owners do not need another explanation of what AI is. They need someone who can identify a useful application, build it correctly, and help their team use it.

Chris Dillon on Scaling with WhatsApp

Chris Dillon’s session focused on how WhatsApp can help businesses scale to seven figures.

That subject was especially relevant in Manila, where WhatsApp and other messaging platforms are a routine part of business and personal communication.

For companies operating in markets where customers prefer messaging, forcing every conversation into email or a phone call creates unnecessary friction.

WhatsApp gives businesses a way to respond quickly, continue conversations, send reminders, answer questions, and move leads toward an appointment or purchase.

The value comes from how the channel is used.

A flood of automated messages will not improve the customer experience. A structured and timely conversation can.

For agencies, that distinction matters. The opportunity is not simply to connect WhatsApp to a workflow. It is to design a better communication process around the way customers already behave.

Chase Buckner on HighLevel AI

Chase Buckner continued the AI discussion with a closer look at HighLevel AI.

As HighLevel adds more AI capabilities across conversations, workflows, content, and customer management, users face a new challenge: deciding what to implement first.

The most useful starting point is usually a specific operational problem.

A business may be taking too long to respond to new leads. Staff may be answering the same questions repeatedly. Appointments may be missed because reminders are inconsistent. Sales teams may be losing track of conversations across different channels.

Those are practical problems with measurable consequences.

AI becomes valuable when it improves one of those processes-not when it is added only because it is new.

Marketing, Team Development, and Affiliate Growth

The second half of the day moved from technology into the systems and people required to support growth.

RJ Villamer presented “Why ‘NOT MARKETING’ Is the Best Marketing,” challenging attendees to reconsider what effective promotion looks like in a market full of polished funnels and automated content.

The core issue is trust.

People are more likely to pay attention when content is useful, specific, and relevant to a real problem. The strongest marketing does not always feel like marketing. It may be a clear explanation, a useful example, or an honest account of what worked and what did not.

Joanna Sherrow then addressed team development in “Closing the Growth Gap: Turning Admins Into Specialists.”

That transition is important for agencies that want to grow beyond the founder.

A team of generalists may work in the early stages, but larger businesses need clearer roles and deeper expertise. An administrative team member can grow into an onboarding specialist, automation expert, CRM manager, or customer success lead when the company provides the right training and path forward.

Declan O’Reilly closed this part of the agenda with “Beyond the View Count: How to Build a Self-Scaling Affiliate System.”

His topic shifted attention away from reach as an end goal. Views and clicks may create visibility, but sustainable affiliate growth depends on trust, education, follow-up, and continued support.

That is a useful distinction for anyone building around HighLevel. A referral link may start the relationship, but the experience that follows determines whether the customer stays.

Closing Day One

The first day ended with a speaker panel and an evening event.

The panel gave attendees an opportunity to hear speakers respond to questions and connect the day’s themes across AI, marketing, operations, and growth.

The evening event created more time for direct conversations between attendees, speakers, and community members.

That part of the conference should not be treated as an afterthought.

Sessions provide information. Conversations help people decide how that information applies to their business.

Some attendees left Day One with a clearer AI offer. Others found a potential partner, met someone with the technical skills they needed, or gained a better understanding of the next problem they should solve.

Day Two: Leadership, Growth, and What’s Next for HighLevel

If Day One focused on building smarter businesses, Day Two focused on the people building them.

The sessions shifted from technology toward leadership, entrepreneurship, and long-term growth. Speakers shared personal stories, practical frameworks, and lessons from building agencies, SaaS companies, and service businesses within the HighLevel ecosystem.

The day also featured one of the conference’s most anticipated sessions – a look at what’s next for HighLevel from co-founders Shaun Clark, Robin Alex and Varun Vairavan.

Cece Tan: From Virtual Assistant to SaaS Founder

Cece Tan opened the second day by sharing her journey from virtual assistant to becoming the first Filipina SaaS founder.

For many attendees, her story reflected what makes the HighLevel community unique.

There is no single path to success.

Some people begin by providing technical support. Others start as freelancers, marketers, appointment setters, or automation specialists. Over time, many discover opportunities to expand their skills, serve larger clients, build teams, launch agencies, or create software businesses of their own.

Cece’s story demonstrated that growth is rarely defined by where someone starts. It is shaped by a willingness to continue learning, take on greater responsibility, and create opportunities for others along the way.

As someone who has helped grow the HighLevel community throughout the Philippines, her keynote also served as a reminder that success becomes more meaningful when it contributes to the success of others.

HighLevel on the Horizon

Few sessions generated as much anticipation as HighLevel on the Horizon, featuring co-founders Shaun Clark, Robin Alex and Varun Vairavan.

Since launching HighLevel, the platform has evolved from an all-in-one solution for agencies into a business platform used by consultants, coaches, local businesses, SaaS companies, marketers, and entrepreneurs around the world.

That growth has been driven by more than new features.

It reflects the way businesses are adapting to changing customer expectations, increasing competition, and the rapid development of artificial intelligence.

During the session, attendees heard directly from the co-founders about HighLevel’s vision for the future and the opportunities they see for agencies and businesses building on the platform.

For many in the audience, this was the highlight of the conference.

It was an opportunity to better understand not only where HighLevel is headed, but how users can position themselves for the next phase of growth.

Among the roadmap highlights were new loyalty and social listening capabilities, expanded WhatsApp tools, AI-powered call coaching and analytics, more advanced Conversation AI agents, and new AI capabilities for websites and workflows.

The co-founders also shared that HighLevel has grown to more than 150,000 customers representing 1.5 million businesses worldwide, while emphasizing continued international expansion and learning directly from users in markets such as the Philippines.

Matthew Panganiban: From Freelancer to Agency

Matthew Panganiban explored a challenge familiar to many entrepreneurs-making the transition from freelancer to agency owner.

Freelancing and running an agency require different ways of thinking.

A freelancer is often rewarded for doing excellent work personally.

An agency owner must learn how to build systems, delegate responsibilities, develop a team, and deliver consistent results across multiple clients.

That transition is not always easy, but it creates opportunities for sustainable growth that are difficult to achieve alone.

Matthew encouraged freelancers to start by choosing a specific high-ticket niche, understanding its problems, and building an offer tied to measurable ROI.

For Filipino entrepreneurs in particular, he recommended considering local clients first – using those early results to build confidence, testimonials, and case studies before expanding into international markets.

Dr. Priya Jaganathan: Building High-Value Offers

Dr. Priya Jaganathan focused on creating high-ticket offers that solve meaningful business problems.

One of the recurring themes throughout the conference was that businesses do not invest in technology simply because it exists.

They invest in outcomes.

Whether the goal is generating more qualified leads, improving customer communication, reducing manual work, or increasing revenue, clients are looking for measurable business results.

For agencies, that means shifting conversations away from features and toward value.

Dr. Priya described this as the shift from being an “operator” to becoming an “authority” – moving away from simply charging for time and instead positioning your expertise around the transformation and value you create for the client.

The businesses that communicate value clearly are often better positioned to attract premium clients and build long-term relationships.

Filipino Transformation Panel

One of the most inspiring discussions of the conference brought together Filipino professionals who shared how HighLevel had shaped their careers and businesses.

Their backgrounds were different.

Some started as virtual assistants.

Others began as freelancers, agency team members, or entrepreneurs.

Despite taking different paths, many described similar turning points-developing specialized skills, embracing automation, investing in continuous learning, and taking opportunities that once seemed beyond reach.

The panel reinforced one of the strongest messages of HighLevel LIVE Manila.

Success within the ecosystem isn’t determined by where you begin.

It’s determined by your willingness to keep building.

Michael Reimer: The AI Agency Revenue System

Michael Reimer closed the educational sessions with “Sell. Build. Deploy. The AI Agency Revenue System.”

One of Michael’s central ideas was that AI itself isn’t the product – the response system around it is. He focused on helping businesses recover revenue lost through neglected databases, weak reputation, unanswered calls and messages, and websites that fail to convert.

His presentation brought together many of the ideas introduced throughout the conference and translated them into a practical framework for agencies.

A big hit during Michael’s talk was the live demo of HighLevel’s Voice AI feature – speaking in the local Filipino language of Tagalog. Feedback was that Voice AI delivered nearly perfect quality in the foreign language.

Artificial intelligence is creating new service opportunities, but technology alone does not create a successful business.

Agencies still need to identify real customer problems, communicate value effectively, implement reliable solutions, and support clients after deployment.

Michael’s framework emphasized that sustainable growth depends on more than adopting new technology.

It requires disciplined execution from the initial sales conversation through long-term client success.

For agencies looking to expand their AI services, the session provided a practical roadmap for turning innovation into recurring revenue.

Five Takeaways from HighLevel LIVE Manila

Looking back across both days, several themes appeared consistently throughout the conference.

1. AI Has Moved Beyond Experimentation

Artificial intelligence is no longer something businesses are testing on the side.

It is becoming part of sales, marketing, customer service, operations, and business development.

The question is no longer whether to adopt AI, but where it can deliver the greatest value.

2. Great Agencies Solve Business Problems

Clients rarely buy software.

They invest in outcomes.

The agencies positioned for long-term success are those that understand their clients’ challenges and build solutions that improve measurable business results.

3. Community Accelerates Growth

One of HighLevel‘s greatest strengths continues to be its community.

The conversations that happened between sessions, during meals, and throughout the networking events often proved just as valuable as the presentations themselves.

Knowledge is shared more freely when people are willing to help one another succeed.

4. The Philippines Has Become a Key Part of HighLevel’s Global Community

HighLevel LIVE Manila demonstrated that the Philippines is more than a growing market.

It has become a source of leadership, innovation, education, and entrepreneurship within the global HighLevel ecosystem.

5. The Opportunity Is Still Growing

Whether attendees were agency owners, freelancers, consultants, SaaS founders, or business owners, one message remained consistent.

HighLevel continues to create opportunities for people willing to learn, adapt, and build.

What Is HighLevel?

If you’re discovering HighLevel because of the excitement surrounding HighLevel LIVE Manila, here’s a simple way to think about it.

HighLevel is an all-in-one platform that helps businesses manage marketing, sales, customer communication, and automation from one place.

Instead of using separate tools for CRM, email marketing, SMS, calendars, funnels, websites, workflows, reputation management, and customer conversations, businesses can manage those functions within a single platform.

For agencies, that means fewer disconnected systems and more efficient client management.

For businesses, it means creating a more consistent customer experience from the first inquiry through ongoing support.

As HighLevel continues to invest in AI, automation, and new platform capabilities, it is also becoming a foundation for agencies building recurring services and SaaS businesses.

New to HighLevel?

If you’re considering HighLevel for the first time, don’t feel like you need to learn every feature at once.

Start with a single customer journey.

Capture a lead.

Respond quickly.

Book an appointment.

Follow up consistently.

Once that process is working, expand from there.

That’s how many successful agencies and businesses began.

If you’d like to explore HighLevel for yourself, you can start a free trial through GHLCentral:

Frequently Asked Questions

What is HighLevel LIVE Manila?

HighLevel LIVE Manila is HighLevel’s flagship conference in the Philippines, bringing together agency owners, marketers, entrepreneurs, and community members to learn, network, and explore the future of business growth.

Where was HighLevel LIVE Manila 2026 held?

The conference took place at the Manila Marriott Hotel at Newport World Resorts in Pasay City, Philippines.

Who spoke at the event?

Speakers included Robin Alex, Varun Vairavan, Billy Gene, Cece Tan, Chase Buckner, Chris Dillon, RJ Villamer, Joanna Sherrow, Declan O’Reilly, Matthew Panganiban, Dr. Priya Jaganathan, Michael Reimer, and other members of the HighLevel community.

What topics were covered?

Sessions focused on AI, automation, agency growth, WhatsApp marketing, affiliate systems, leadership, SaaS, high-ticket offers, and the future of HighLevel.

How can I start using HighLevel?

You can start with a free trial through GHLCentral at:
https://ghlcentral.com/trial

Looking Ahead

HighLevel LIVE Manila 2026 was more than a successful conference.

It reflected the continued growth of a global community that is redefining how agencies and businesses use technology to serve their clients.

The conversations that began in Manila will continue long after the event ends – not because of the presentations alone, but because thousands of people left with new ideas, stronger connections, and a clearer vision for what’s possible.

For the GHLCentral team, it was a privilege to be part of that experience.

We look forward to seeing how the ideas shared during HighLevel LIVE Manila inspire the next generation of agencies, entrepreneurs, and business leaders – and we can’t wait to see everyone at LevelUP in Dallas, Texas this October.