Microsoft and the U.S. Department of State’s Global Innovation through Science and Technology (GIST) initiative has announced the six winning teams of the Imagine Cup 2017 Middle East and Africa (MEA) regional finals, which took place in Beirut from May 17 to 20, 2017. Six winning teams will head to Seattle to represent the region at the 15thImagine Cup World finals in July where three winning teams will be awarded $100,000 USD, $25,000 USD and $15,000 USD respectively.
The Imagine Cup 2017 MEA finals hosted 47 students in 17 teams, representing Lebanon, Jordan, West Bank & Gaza, Turkey, Tunisia, Pakistan, Kuwait, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Morocco, Qatar, Egypt, Oman, Nigeria, Algeria and Saudi Arabia. The event was held in partnership with the President of the Council of Ministers, His Excellency Mr Saad Hariri; the U.S. Department of State’s GIST initiative; and the American University of Beirut. U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon, Elizabeth Richard, also participated in the closing ceremony.
It was the culmination of a series of National Final events organised by Microsoft subsidiaries in countries across the region, which brought together the brightest young minds to showcase the power of innovation. Teams of up to three students were required to create an original technology project from start to finish – create an idea, make a plan, build the project using a component of Microsoft Azure, and compete.
Team Bl!nk from Lebanon won the title of MEA regional champion after competing with 17 other teams
Addressing the Imagine Cup competitors, U.S. Ambassador Elizabeth Richard said, “On behalf of the American people, I am proud that the United States government, through the Department of State’s Global Innovation through Science and Technology program, is working with Microsoft to support entrepreneurs like you around the world. We believe in the power of creativity and that, with a little support, ideas can become reality and transform the world around us. That is why we have invested hundreds of millions of dollars in education in Lebanon and the Middle East – North Africa region over the past ten years. It is also why we invest in entrepreneurship initiatives like today’s competition, to help talented individuals test their ideas, create new models and prototypes, and launch successful businesses.”
THE SIX WINNING IDEAS
DocStroke from Jordan: DocStroke aims to provide the cheap technique to determine the risks of strokes using ocular image processing and machine learning that any rural medical institution could afford, so they could warn the stroke and prevent it from happening with all of its side effects, including deaths caused by the stroke.
Bl!nk from Lebanon: The project consists of a solution that gives feedback to the user on a rehearsal of a presentation or speech he is preparing
Green Jam from the United Arab Emirates: The Project aims to accelerate Dubai’s goal of being one of the world’s most sustainable cities. This is done by turning recycling into a habit for UAE citizens, through a reward system that is widely accessible from anywhere in Dubai, to all residents. The project also solves many of the problems that Dubai’s attempts to increase recycling currently have, such as waste sorting.
Beta Team from Oman: ‘Bee’ is an app that is connected with Beacons technology for retail shops, and it aims toward understanding the context of the world around the app users. Bee aims to enhance customer experience of shoppers and empower retailers.
E-park from Morocco: E-park’s project is a web application that allows its users to find parking spaces. Their prototype uses a camera that is fixed on street lamps and spots empty/full places and users can book them or check availability in different parkings.
Team WaCoMo from Qatar: WaCoMo is a complete platform that provides interactive visualization of the water consumption happening at different outlets in a property, and in turn encouraging efficient water usage.
Team Bl!nk from Lebanon won the title of MEA regional champion after competing with 17 other teams. Hoda Younan, Microsoft Lebanon Country Manager, said; “Through Imagine Cup, we aim to inspire student developers to create innovative solutions that change the way we live, work and play, while also growing the skills they need to pursue a future in technology. Students from different universities across the MEA region formed teams, dreamt big and worked hard to create fantastic new solutions using industry-leading technologies, like Microsoft Azure, that professional developers build with every day. Today, we are here to honour their success.”
