The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has ranked first for winning the highest number of medals in the global youth artificial intelligence competition (WAICY), which included 18,000 students from 40 countries, surpassing the United States, India, Greece, Canada, and Singapore. The competition, organized by the Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA) in collaboration with King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), saw 18 Saudi projects awarded, including 11 medals (gold, silver, and bronze) and 7 projects earning advanced positions out of 6,039 projects. The United States achieved 10 medals, while India and Greece won two medals each, and Canada and Singapore each secured one medal.
Representing the Kingdom were students from various educational levels: primary, intermediate, and secondary from schools such as Misk, Dhahran, Madhak, KAUST, Aramco, AlUla, and Neom, competing in the three categories of the competition: AI Showcase, AI-Generated Art, and AI LARGE LANGUAGE MODEL. In recognition of this Saudi success, SDAIA and KAUST received the distinguished organization award globally for their efforts and commitment to advancing artificial intelligence education.
These results highlight the increasing awareness of Saudi society regarding artificial intelligence technologies, previously noted in the sixth edition of the Stanford University AI Index report published in April 2023, where the Kingdom ranked second globally in societal awareness of AI, reflecting a high level of trust among Saudi citizens in engaging with AI products and services.
In the secondary category, Dhahran International Schools received the silver award in the AI Showcase category and ranked fourth in the special category. In the AI-Generated Art category, Neom Schools won the silver award, while in the AI LARGE LANGUAGE MODEL category, Dhahran International Schools won the gold award and placed fourth in the special category.
For the intermediate level, Madhak Academy secured the bronze medal in the AI Showcase category, while Misk Schools ranked fourth in the special category. In the AI LARGE LANGUAGE MODEL category, Misk Schools won both silver and bronze medals, with AlUla Schools earning fourth place in the special category.
At the primary level, Neom Schools won the silver medal in the AI Showcase category, followed by Madhak Academy in fourth place and Misk Schools in fifth. In the AI-Generated Art Track, Neom Schools won the gold medal and AlUla Schools the silver. Additionally, in the AI LARGE LANGUAGE MODEL category, Aramco Schools won the gold medal, with Neom Schools earning the silver.
This competition is among the largest global competitions of its kind, with SDAIA being the pioneer in adopting it to enhance the knowledge and skills of the youth in the Kingdom, preparing them to grasp the significance and impact of artificial intelligence technology in various fields while encouraging participation in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) domains.
