Note: Single-source report; awaiting corroboration.
First Lady Melania Trump hosted the first Presidential Artificial Intelligence Challenge National Champion Awards Ceremony at the White House, where she honored six student teams recognized as National Champions. Mrs. Trump emphasized the program's role in creating new opportunities and inspiring young innovators to pursue their ambitions. She highlighted that artificial intelligence impacts sectors such as healthcare, nutrition, and public safety.
The inaugural Presidential AI Challenge attracted more than 20,000 students from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and 49 Department of Defense Education Activity schools in 10 countries. The six National Champion teams represent the top performers in various tracks and school levels.
The winners included elementary students from Alcoa Intermediate School for the 'Homework Helper' project; a community group from Aldie, VA, who developed a bullying prevention chatbot called 'Friendzone'; middle school students from NorthStar Middle School in Sammamish, WA, who created 'SkillUp'; a middle school student from Julia Landon College Preparatory School in Jacksonville, FL, focused on urban blight detection; high school students from Upper Darby Senior High School, PA, using computer vision for criminal investigations; and a high school student from North Allegheny High School, PA, who created a low-cost AI navigation framework for the visually impaired.
Mrs. Trump praised participants for applying AI to real-world problems and acknowledged the significant impact of emerging technologies on America's future. Secretaries Wright and Rollins were also recognized for supporting the program.