DOHA: Student teams representing Qatar University and Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar (CMU-Q) have won Microsoft’s annual premier student technology competition Imagine Cup 2016 held in Doha recently.
Qatar National Finals saw competition from teams representing QU, CMU-Q and Texas A&M University in Qatar featured in three categories that included Innovation; World Citizenship; and Gaming.
The winning teams from each category were ‘Team Xblink’ from QU in the Innovation category; ‘Team BuzzCast’ from CMU-Q in the World Citizenship category; and ‘Team Focus’ also from QU, in the Gaming category. All three national finalist teams will travel to Cairo to represent Qatar at the third Pan-Arab Semi-Finals taking place at the end of May.
The event marked the 14th year of Imagine Cup, which has come to form a pivotal part of Microsoft’s YouthSpark programme, a global CSR initiative, launched in 2012.
It was held under the patronage of Minister of Transport and Communications H E Jassim bin Saif Al Sulaiti at the Kempinski Marsa Malaz at the Pearl-Qatar.
Al Sulaiti said: “The unique minds that introduce startup projects in Qatar deserve incubation and support; something where the Ministry of Transport and Communications places a lot of attention. The Digital Incubation Centre will incubate all the teams that participated in the 2016 Imagine Cup Finals within the Centre’s Launchpad Track.
“The centre will extend support in the cost of completing the initial models of the two ideas that won the first place in the two categories of Innovation and World Citizenship.”
Submission of entries were accepted from teams comprising up to four members aged 16 to 26 years who were challenged to develop innovative projects and present real world solutions to real world problems.
Many projects from universities in Qatar were submitted to Microsoft, however only six teams were shortlisted to compete for the national title.
Qatar Finals were sponsored by Ebla Computer Consultancy (diamond sponsor) and Information & Communication Technology and Qatar Datamation Systems — both platinum sponsors.
The Peninsula
