What happens when you gather hundreds of young tech whizzes from around the world and hand them robots?
The World Robot Olympiad, which kicked off in Singapore on Wednesday, is about to show us.
This annual competition was launched in Singapore back in 2004 and was hosted in Türkiye last year.
It celebrates how science and technology can reshape everyday life.
And the best part? The innovators are kids and teens.
Organisers say 594 teams and 1,571 participants from 91 countries are gearing up to compete on Thursday and Friday.
This is under this year’s theme: “The Future of Robots.” So what does that future look like?
Youth Robotics Challenge
According to the organisers, the theme digs into how robotics can tackle global challenges and make life a little easier for everyone.
Contestants, aged eight to 22, earned their spots after winning local and national rounds — so the stakes are high.
One task asks teams to build and program a robot that can handle a field that changes every round, forcing the machine to think on its own.
In another category, robots face off in a lively match of “double tennis.”
Older participants will even test autonomous driving, building steering-drive bots that can navigate tracks without human help.
Who knows? The next big breakthrough in robotics might just come from an eight-year-old with a toolkit and big dreams.
