Public Affairs

AUK RISE Hosts Kuwait Finals of Microsoft Imagine Cup 2016

19th Apr 2016 | by the Department of PR & Marketing

The Center for Research in Informatics, Sciences and Engineering (RISE) at AUK announced that AUK will be hosting the Microsoft Imagine Cup Kuwait Finals for the second year, on April 20th, 2016. The Imagine Cup 2016 allows students to bring their technological ambitions to fruition with the help of Microsoft resources and guidance.

One team from AUK will be competing in Imagine Cup this year, along with other teams from the Gulf University for Science & Technology (GUST) and the American University of the Middle East (AUM). The winning teams will qualify for the Pan-Arab Semi-Finals to be held in Egypt in May 2016, leading to Microsoft Imagine Cup Worldwide Finals, which will be held in USA in July 2016.

Dr. Amir Zeid, Director of RISE Center at the American University of Kuwait, and mentor of the AUK team, said: "We are very proud to participate in Microsoft Imagine Cup for the 6th time; every year we have new teams participating and new talents unleashed, and that indeed is the core of what we strive to achieve here at AUK; incubate thinkers and innovators and offer them opportunities to expose their ideas."

Imagine Cup is broken down into three tiers of competition: Games, Innovation and World Citizenship. The Games tier invites creative students to produce a game on the following platforms: Windows (PC or touchscreen), Windows Phone, Xbox Indie Games or Kinect SDK. The Innovation tier includes innovative, ground-breaking and appealing software engineered by students using Microsoft tools and technology. Lastly, the World Citizenship tier is built for solutions to global challenges - apps to help reduce world hunger, raise environmental awareness or provide better access to education, for example. The AUK teams will be presenting ideas under the category of Innovation and World Citizenship.

The Imagine Cup Kuwait Finals will take place on April 20th at the Multipurpose Room of the American University of Kuwait (AUK) in Salmiya. The event is open to public and will commence at 4:30pm. Student presentations will run from 5pm-7pm, followed by an award ceremony at 8:pm when the winning teams will be announced.

About RISE:

The AUK Center for Research in Informatics, Sciences, and Engineering (RISE) serves as AUK's primary source for multidisciplinary research and development (R&D) activities. The Center employs a holistic approach to R&D by integrating academic disciplines, and forging connections between local & international innovators, academia & industry, and technology & society.

About Microsoft:

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq "MSFT") is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

Released by the Office of Public Affairs on the 19th April 2016