Think, innovate and make drones, students told

A drone for instant deliveries displayed at the interactive museum during the Government Summit on February 10. — KT file photo

The UAE Government is urging students from across the world to make civilian-friendly drones, as part of its newly launched ‘UAE Drones for Good Award’.

Award Timeline Phase 1: Open Call The goal of Phase 1 is to come up with ideas for the best government services. Participants have until August 1 to complete their registration, create a two minute video describing their idea, and submit a video to the competition website. Semi-finalists will be announced by the 15th of August. Phase 2: Semi-finals Phase 2 begins on August 15, with the announcement of the semi-finalists. The goal of Phase 2 is to describe a complete technical solution for the service idea. Semi-finalists will need to submit a detailed technical proposal describing how their service idea will be delivered. Full technical documentation must be upload to the competition website by the 30th of September. Phase 3: Finals The final round of the national competition will begin on October 15 with the announcement of the shortlisted finalists. The goal of the final phase is to address concerns raised in Phase 2 and demonstrate the actual service. Finalists must prepare a short presentation outlining the technical, functional and economic aspects of their service, as well as perform a live demonstration in front of a panel of final judges. The winner will be selected and announced by November 15.

Speaking with Khaleej Times, Saif Al Alaily, project manager of the UAE Drones For Good Award, said: “We are getting in touch with a lot of local and international universities. We have plans to do road shows or Google Hangouts globally to engage students and inform them about the competition.”

The competition has a cash prize of Dh1 million at the national level and $1 million ($272,000) for the international competition. “We want to bring everyone onboard and the UAE government always believes in student potential. With the right direction, incentives and platform, students can come up with a lot of ideas. We want these students to think and innovate,” said Saif.

A team of officials working on the drone project at the UAE Prime Minister’s office are visiting major universities across the country. On Tuesday, a delegation interacted with students at the American University of Dubai. “We have a plan to cover all federal and private universities in the UAE. There are two aspects to the competition. Firstly, we will look at the innovation potential of the drones in improving services provided by a government entity. Secondly, the technical aspect of drones is also important,” he said.

Students are being asked to submit a two-minute video showcasing the potential of their idea, by uploading it to the competition’s official website – www.dronesforgood.ae

The national competition is dedicated to rewarding the best, most practical ideas for using unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) technology today for delivering government services in the UAE within the next 12 months. Also it must function safely and effectively, and must fulfil a real citizen need or government service.

muaz@khaleejtimes.com