Innovation, teamwork, and AI at the UST AI Challenge at USUST

On April 17, 2026, the UST AI Challenge – an intensive educational competition was held at the SEI ‘Dnipro Institute of Infrastructure and Transport’ of the Ukrainian State University of Science and Technologies. The event united Dnipro lyceum students, student mentors, and academic staff around modern artificial intelligence technologies. 
 
The event continued a series of intellectual competitions regularly organized at the SEI ‘DIIT’ and aimed at fostering digital competencies, critical thinking, and practical skills in working with AI tools.
Nine lyceum teams took part in the challenge, working on their own ideas, analyzing results, developing solutions using artificial intelligence, and presenting them to the jury. A distinctive feature of the event was the close collaboration between school students and USUST students, who, together with university lecturers, served as mentors and supported the teams throughout the intensive program.
 
The projects addressed a wide range of pressing issues, from the impact of artificial intelligence on the labor market to the ethical dimensions of AI use, information security, the development of smart cities, and the role of technology in shaping worldview.
Following the presentations, the jury recognized the teams in several nomination categories:
  • ‘Thinkers of the Future’ (Dnipro Lyceum No. 22, Dnipro City Council) won the Team Synergy nomination for effective teamwork with the project ‘Impact of artificial intelligence on the labor market’. 
  • ‘TARS’ (MEC No. 66) received the Bold Experiment award for the most daring solution with the project ‘Human dependence on AI and its impact on society’. 
  • ‘404’ (Dnipro Lyceum No. 28, Dnipro City Council) won the Creative AI Concept nomination for the most original idea for using AI with the project ‘Impact of social media on mental health’.
  • ‘AI Genesis’ (Dnipro Lyceum No. 7, Dnipro City Council) received the Future Vision award for the most promising concept with the project ‘Smart city of the future’.
  • ‘The Unstoppable Engineers’ (Dnipro Lyceum No. 137, Dnipro City Council) won the AI Power Stack nomination for integrating multiple AI tools into a single solution in the project ‘Ethical AI: where is the line between opportunity and responsibility?’ 
  • ‘Kmitlyvi’ (Dnipro Lyceum No. 111, Dnipro City Council) won the Social Impact Award for the social significance of its solution, presented in the project ‘How to achieve peace on the planet’.
  • ‘Eco-life’ (Dnipro Lyceum No. 57, Dnipro City Council) received the Best Practical Solution award for the most practical and well-reasoned project, ‘How can mass media conceal propaganda?’
  • ‘Code of the Nation #AI_Warriors_UA’ (MEC No. 148 ‘Planet of Happiness’, Dnipro City Council) won the AI Innovators nomination for the most unconventional and creative approach in the project ‘Impact of Artificial Intelligence on the Labor Market’. 
  • ‘Hromada’ (Dnipro Lyceum No. 138, Dnipro City Council) received the AI Problem Solvers award for its comprehensive approach to addressing the topic ‘Artificial intelligence in education’.
The UST AI Challenge once again showed how young people are  interested in modern technologies and ready to work with artificial intelligence in a responsible way. Such initiatives help shape a new generation of specialists who are able to combine engineering thinking, digital skills, and creativity, which are the key competencies of the modern world.
 
USUST continues developing a practice-oriented learning environment in which theory is immediately tr
More photos are available via the  link.