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Saudi Team Leaves Kingdom for United States to Participate in ISEF 2024

This year marks the 18th consecutive year of Saudi participation - SPA
This year marks the 18th consecutive year of Saudi participation - SPA
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Saudi Team Leaves Kingdom for United States to Participate in ISEF 2024

This year marks the 18th consecutive year of Saudi participation - SPA
This year marks the 18th consecutive year of Saudi participation - SPA

The Saudi Science and Engineering Team left Riyadh to participate in the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF 2024), which will be held in Los Angeles, United States, from May 10 to 18.
Thirty-five Saudi female and male students from the King Abdulaziz and his Companions Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity -- "Mawhiba” -- will be competing with 1,700 peers from 70 countries in ISEF, the world’s largest and most prestigious pre-college competition in scientific research and innovation, SPA reported.
Mawhiba said that the Science and Engineering Team includes elite Saudi students who were chosen from among more than 210,000 students from various regions of the Kingdom at the beginning of this year. Their scientific projects passed through various judging stages during the "Ibdaa" National Olympiad for Scientific Creativity until they were reduced to 180, out of which 35 talented students were nominated to represent the Kingdom in ISEF out of the 45 students whose projects qualified to the Olympiad’s finals.
The foundation underlined that the students nominated to represent the Kingdom in ISEF 2024 underwent intensive training given by Saudi and foreign academic trainers and experts in various disciplines to develop their skills and qualify them to participate in the exhibition through integrated efforts of a number of national incubators and supporters, including universities and research centers, parents, families, and teachers.
Represented by Mawhiba, the Kingdom also participates in ISEF 2024 exhibition as a main sponsor and offers special prizes for the best participating projects in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), which include paid scholarships for undergraduate study at the King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, as well as scholarships to participate in the Mawhiba Universal Enrichment Program.
Saudi Arabia extends its impressive streak in international science competitions. This year marks the 18th consecutive year of participation, with a remarkable track record to show for it. Since 2007, Saudi students have claimed a staggering 133 awards, including 92 grand prizes and 41 special distinctions. This exceptional achievement underscores the Kingdom's dedicated efforts to foster a culture of innovation and propel scientific excellence among its youth.

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TikTok Faces US Ban Deadline as Users Brace for Fallout

A social media influencer films a video for his new Xiaohongshu, also known as RedNote, after leaving TikTok, in Times Square in New York City, US, January 16, 2025. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
A social media influencer films a video for his new Xiaohongshu, also known as RedNote, after leaving TikTok, in Times Square in New York City, US, January 16, 2025. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
TT
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TikTok Faces US Ban Deadline as Users Brace for Fallout

A social media influencer films a video for his new Xiaohongshu, also known as RedNote, after leaving TikTok, in Times Square in New York City, US, January 16, 2025. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
A social media influencer films a video for his new Xiaohongshu, also known as RedNote, after leaving TikTok, in Times Square in New York City, US, January 16, 2025. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo

TikTok buzzed with nervous anticipation across the US on Saturday as a looming federal ban threatened to sever access to the Chinese-owned app that has captivated nearly half of all Americans, powered small businesses and shaped online culture.

The company said late Friday that it will go dark in the United States on Sunday unless President Joe Biden's administration provides assurances to companies like Apple and Google that they will not face enforcement actions when a ban takes effect.

The ban would be enacted under a law signed by President Joe Biden in April and mark the first US shutdown of a major social media app -- with TikTok boasting about 170 million domestic users and an estimated $20 billion in 2025 revenue.

The platform has until Sunday to cut ties with its China-based parent ByteDance or shut down its US operation to resolve concerns it posed a threat to national security.

Supreme Court justices upheld the ban on Friday in a unanimous decision and a White House statement suggested Biden would not take any action to save TikTok before the deadline.

Without a decision by Biden to formally invoke a 90-day delay in the deadline, companies providing services to TikTok or hosting the app could face legal liability. It is not clear if TikTok's business partners, including Apple, Alphabet's Google and Oracle, will continue doing business with it before Trump is inaugurated on Monday, according to Reuters.

Uncertainty over the app's future had sent users - mostly made up of younger people - scrambling to alternatives including China-based RedNote. Rivals Meta and Snap had also seen their shares rise this month ahead of the ban, as investors bet on an influx of users and ad dollars.

Marketing firms reliant on TikTok have rushed to prepare contingency plans this week in what one executive described as a "hair on fire" moment after months of conventional wisdom saying that a solution would materialize to keep the app running.

There have been signs that TikTok could make a comeback under incoming US President Donald Trump, who wants to pursue a "political resolution" of the issue and had last month urged the Supreme Court to pause implementation of the ban.

Trump said on Friday the decision on the future of the TikTok app will be up to him, but he did not provide any detail about what steps he would take. Media reports have said that he was considering an executive order that would suspend the enforcement of the TikTok sale-or-ban law for 60 to 90 days.

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew plans to attend the US presidential inauguration on Jan. 20 and sit among high-profile guests invited by Trump, a source told Reuters.

Suitors including former Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt have expressed interest in the fast-growing business that analysts estimate could be worth as much as $50 billion. Media reports say Beijing has also held talks about selling TikTok's US operations to billionaire and Trump ally Elon Musk, though the company has denied that.

Privately held ByteDance is about 60% owned by institutional investors such as BlackRock and General Atlantic, while its founders and employees own 20% each. It has more than 7,000 employees in the US.