Second edition of 'Engineer It with Artificial Intelligence' competition launched

Muscat: The Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology on Wednesday launched the second edition of the "Engineer It with Artificial Intelligence" competition, featuring the participation of 25 teams comprising developers, designers and innovators from various governorates of the Sultanate of Oman.

The launch ceremony was held under the patronage of Dr. Munthir Hilal Al Busaidi, Head of Oman Vision 2040 Implementation Follow-Up Unit at the Ministry of Economy.

The competition aims to empower national talent and foster innovation in emerging technologies. The programme runs from July through September 2026 and encompasses a series of training bootcamps, workshops and mentorship sessions designed to develop participants' capabilities and enable them to build innovative AI-driven solutions.

The second edition builds upon the success of its predecessor, with this year's focus on the concept of Agentic AI—one of the most prominent contemporary trends in artificial intelligence. This paradigm centres on developing autonomous systems capable of independent decision-making and task execution to achieve predefined objectives.

Throughout the programme, participants will receive hands-on, specialized training in the design and development of AI-powered solutions, the application of Agentic AI concepts to real-world challenges, data utilisation and model development, as well as product development and feasibility validation. Additionally, they will refine their presentation and pitching skills for innovative solutions.

The competition also features a dedicated track leveraging the National Open Data Portal, enabling participating teams to harness real-world datasets in the development of innovative solutions that address national challenges and generate added value for both society and the economy.

The launch ceremony featured interactive sessions and brief presentations of the ideas submitted by the participating teams. The competition will culminate in final pitch sessions, during which teams will present their projects before a panel of experts and specialists for evaluation of the developed solutions and selection of the winning projects.