RIYADH — The Saudi national artificial intelligence team has won six international awards at the inaugural Asia-Pacific Olympiad in Artificial Intelligence (APOAI) 2026, organized virtually by China. A total of 129 students representing 18 countries participated in the Olympiad, and this featured the Kingdom’s first participation in the emerging international competition. Saudi Arabia’s achievements included one gold medal, three silver medals, and two certificates of appreciation. Qusai Emad Jadallah from the Jeddah Education Department bagged the gold medal, while Laith Suwaid Al-Zahrani from Riyadh Education, Yousef Farid Al-Khalawi from Jeddah Education, and Ali Ayman Al-Khabbaz from Eastern Region Education received silver medals. Raed Hassan Tayeb from Eastern Region Education and Hamad Mohammed Al-Kalbani from Riyadh Education were awarded certificates of appreciation. The Kingdom’s participation, represented by the King Abdulaziz and His Companions Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity (Mawhiba) in partnership with the Ministry of Education and KAUST Academy, underscores the strong presence of Saudi students in advanced technology fields and reflects continued investment in young national talent specializing in AI and future technologies.
