By Chris Jerico V. Tingson, BA-ELS 4, The Centralian Link Intern

CPU PSSE members pose for a group photo with guest speaker Mr. Ferjen Dave Torred after presenting him with a certificate and a token of appreciation.

The Philippine Society of Software Engineers (PSSE) held DevFest 4.0: Prompt-to-Prototype: Turning Abstract Ideas into Working Applications on March 2, 2026, at the Engineering Building. The seminar gathered students to explore how artificial intelligence (AI) can help transform ideas into functional application prototypes through structured prompting and system design.

During the session, participants examined the Prompt-to-Prototype pipeline, which outlines four stages in modern prototype development: Test, Ground, Think, and Build. Through demonstrations and discussions, they learned how developers can test ideas with AI models, ground concepts using reliable information, design system logic, and construct interactive interfaces that allow users to try working prototypes.

The seminar featured Ferjen Dave Torred, a BS Software Engineering alumnus of Central Philippine University and research engineer at NMBLR AI. He discussed how developers today increasingly function as system orchestrators who coordinate AI tools and design logical frameworks that guide systems from concept to implementation.

DevFest 4.0 highlighted how modern development approaches are narrowing the gap between ideas and working software, encouraging participants to approach innovation through clear architecture, structured logic, and rapid prototyping.