NEWS
UAE
NYU Abu Dhabi to host Fifth
International Hackathon
Talented student hackers from around
the world are set to descend on NYU
Abu Dhabi’s campus (NYUAD) this
April for the annual International
Hackathon for Social Good in the Arab
World. Taking place between April 15 –
17, students will be split into teams and
mentored by renowned international
computer science professors, founders
of successful start-ups, technology
professionals, and venture capitalists,
as they come together to develop
innovative applications for the benefit
of social good.
Organised by Sana Odeh, NYUAD
clinical professor of computer science;
faculty liaison for global programmes
of computer science, NYU, New York,
the teams are brought together to
programme day and night, developing
innovative applications relevant
to diverse fields such as health,
education, film, music, business, and
science. Presenting their applications
to a panel of judges on April 17,
students will compete for top honours.
Winning apps in previous years have
included a wearable device to monitor
construction workers’ health.
Cisco and Intertec event
highlights importance of
RAK digitisation
Cisco and Intertec
Systems hosted
a joint event to
highlight the
importance of
digitisation in the
Internet of Things
(IoT) era at the
Waldorf Astoria,
Ras Al Khaimah
(RAK). Technology
experts and
senior executives from both companies provided insights on
Cisco’s Data Centre, Application and Collaboration solutions
and held demonstrations to highlight the key features and
benefits delivered by these solutions and the role they play in
supporting RAK’s digital transformation initiatives. The event
was attended by RAK-based government, semi-government
and private sector customers representing multiple industries.
6
INTELLIGENTCIO
Commenting on the Hackathon,
Odeh said: “NYUAD Hackathon is a
global event that brings talented and
passionate students and mentors from
around the world to create new and
innovative technologies from apps to
hardware applications for social good
in the Arab world. We are pushing for
new ways of creative learning and
also creating strong collaborations
across borders to build technologies
that have the potential to change
the world. Our Hackathon alumni go
on to win awards, get funding, start
their own start-ups and even find jobs
through our network. We are always
impressed by the quality of Hackathon
participants joining us from universities
such as MIT, Stanford, AUB, Al
Akhawayn, MASDAR, among others.
We are looking forward to what these
new groups of talented students can
innovate this year at NYUAD.”
Students will present their applications
to a panel of judges on Sunday, April
17 at 5:30pm.
The event followed the recent signing of a Memorandum
of Understanding between the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah
and Cisco Systems, which establishes a working relationship
in the areas of education, commerce, healthcare and
electronic government. This undertaking is a reflection
of the Emirate’s commitment to continuously enhance
its services to all Ras Al Khaimah residents and to provide
better services to both the government and private sectors
in the Emirate.
Speaking on the event, Ala’a Al-Bawab, Regional Manager
for Public Sector and Oil & Gas, Cisco UAE, said, “Cisco has
been working closely with the Ras Al Khaimah government
around its key priorities and digitisation efforts to uncover
opportunities for optimising service capabilities and
to identify how faster, more precise, and more reliable
information might generate new possibilities for service
delivery to the public and private sectors. As part of our
efforts, we want to highlight the importance of digital
transformation and demonstrate how the emirate of Ras
Al Khaimah could enhance the quality of life for citizens
through innovative technologies. This seminar was an
opportunity to drive our message to key stakeholders on the
immense potential for digitisation to create a sustainable
and positive impact in every area of society.”
www.intelligentcio.com