Artificial Intelligence competition inspires creativity in using AI to solve daily life problems

To promote artificial intelligence (AI) education among secondary school students, the “Artificial Intelligence and Innovation and Technology Competition 2021-2022” was jointly organised by the Department of Mathematics and Information Technology (MIT) and the Hong Kong Association for Computer Education, with the Hong Kong Joint School Technology Education Association and the Hong Kong Technology Education Association acting as co-organisers. The two-round event was successfully concluded on 2 March 2022, when ten teams from secondary schools explained how their projects can help solve social problems.

Professor Philip Yu, Head of MIT, said that the age of AI has arrived: “AI is bringing sweeping changes to every aspect of our life, with the technology being widely used in areas such as medicine, smart city design, finance and marketing, education, news and social media analytics.” Professor Yu added that having a basic grasp of AI is becoming increasingly essential for the next generation, and the organisers hope that through the competition, secondary school students will have more opportunities to learn how to use AI to solve daily life problems.

In the final competition held online on 2 March 2022, ten teams explained how they developed their designs and how their works use AI technology to solve certain problems. The team from Jockey Club Man Kwan EduYoung College was elected as the winner of the competition by the three-member judging panel, sweeping both the Best Function and User Interface Design awards. The first runner-up went to Heung To Secondary School (Tseung Kwan O), while La Salle College was the second runner-up as well as winner of the Best Presentation award. The Best Innovation award was given to Fanling Rhenish Church Secondary School. Five other school teams were given Merit Awards.

Professor Lam Kin, sponsor of the competition and founder of the Mr and Mrs Lam Kin Research Fund for Artificial Intelligence in Educational and Financial Technologies, said he was amazed by the rich AI knowledge demonstrated by the participating teams. He said: “I was particularly impressed by students’ concerns about people who need help in our society and their eagerness to use AI technology to address social issues.”

In addition to Professor Lam, Mr Cheung Man-yuen, Chairman of Hong Kong Joint School Technology Education Association, and Mr Yu Tsz-wing, Consultant of The Hong Kong Association for Computer Education made up the competition’s judging panel. Marks were given according to creativity, application of AI and STEAM technology, execution of the solution plan, and presentation skills.

In the first round of the competition, around 31 schools submitted their works to the organisers in January 2022. Ten teams were selected by the judging panel to enter the final round of the event. The theme of this year’s event was using AI to solve problems encountered on campus or in life. Through the competition, organisers hope to promote an interest in AI, innovation and technology as well as foster creativity and the spirit of collaboration among secondary school students.

Interested parties may view the final competition here.