Mubasher: Samsung Electronics MENA has teamed up with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to initiate a regional codefest under the name ACT28 AI for Climate Hackathon to support youth efforts exerted for climate change and advance sustainable development.
This regional hackathon will focus on leveraging artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), mobile technologies, and other tech tools designated to establish innovative solutions for climate change challenges, according to a press release.
Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) at Samsung Electronics MENA, Omar Saheb, said: “The hackathon and our COP28 participation support regional youth to acquire technical knowledge that helps them explore better sustainable results for the world’s problems.”
The codefest announcement was made during a joint panel between Samsung and UNDP as part of the COP28 event in Dubai.
Resident Representative of UNDP in Egypt, Alessandro Fracassetti, said: “UNDP supports youth-led innovation and entrepreneurship in the climate-tech sector, which is essential for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. We believe in the potential of youth to provide solutions for climate action, using their mastery and “creativity with technology.”
Fracassetti added: “The ACT28 AI for Climate Hackathon, a joint activity with Samsung, is an excellent platform for youth in the region to demonstrate their creativity and skill in creating cutting-edge solutions to address one of the pivotal challenges of our time.”
The panel also featured Nora Altwaijri, Samsung’s Generation17 Young Leader from Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh.
The new codefest will challenge young data scientists, AI engineers, and AI researchers from the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey to collaborate, brainstorm, and develop advanced solutions for three segments; climate action, life below water, and life on land.
It will further encourage the participants to develop mobile-based solutions for greater outreach and user-friendliness to foster transformative solutions that are pivotal in addressing climate change as well as promoting sustainable practices.
It is noteworthy to mention that the ACT28 AI for Climate Hackathon builds on the success of the Hack for Climate Action Hackathon that was launched at COP27 in Egypt in 2022.
