King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) hosted Ignite initiative, an ideation challenge granting students of Saudi universities an opportunity to put forward their ideas and innovative solutions for some of the biggest issues in the region and the world.
The challenge was held over two days and kicked off on February 10. It was organized in partnership with the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah, the Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC) and Saudi Aerospace Engineering Industries (SAEI).
“Evey KAUST Ignite event starts with a simple question: How do we spark solutions that can change the world? We are very fortunate to have partners the Ministry of Hajj, SAEI and SWCC to design key challenges and provide mentorship opportunities,” KAUST Entrepreneurship Center Director Hattan Ahmed said.
“Seeing the level of innovation that can emerge in just a few days is inspiring, and gives us all great hope for the future,” he added.
The 94 students participating in the event, that ended on Saturday, came from more than 18 Saudi universities and took part in the challenge of developing innovative methods for preparing food in holy sites that are distinguished by its enhanced quality, simplicity, and nutritional value.
It was presented by the Ministry of Hajj and won by team Biscuit with its biodegradable and recyclable utensil package.
Participants were assigned to teams of five based on their individual skills and academic backgrounds.
Once grouped, teams were given real-world challenges presented by KAUST Ignite partners representing water, aviation, and the Hajj experience.
The second challenge was on improving desalination through the optimization of alternative sources of energy and addressing the impact of jellyfish on freshwater production. It was presented by the SWCC.
“Mangrove,” with its jellyfish trap that does not harm marine habitats and allows for relocating the jellyfish from desalination sites to other places at sea won the challenge.
The third challenge was focused on enhancing technologies to improve wildlife detection and curb bird strikes, presented by SAEI.
The Future Seekers team won with a solution that used radiofrequency fields to disrupt birds at aviation sites.
KAUST continues to advance innovation and nurture entrepreneurship to drive the economic transformation underway in Saudi Arabia through its programs that support promising and innovative solutions.
Over 24,000 young innovators have graduated from KAUST’s ideation programs and their accelerator programs have contributed to the establishment of 325 startups presenting solutions for climate, food security, water security, energy and sustainability challenges.
