NYU Abu Dhabi Holds First Ever Virtual Hackathon To Tackle COVID-19 Challenges

ABU DHABI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 14th Apr, 2020) New York University Abu Dhabi, NYUAD, will be hosting the 2020 Annual NYUAD International Hackathon for Social Good in the Arab World from 16th to 19th April.

The ninth edition of the programming marathon will be hosted online for the first time ever and will tackle challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic, bringing together aspiring programmers from around the world to generate innovative solutions in response to the current global situation, NYUAD said in a press statement today.

More than 120 outstanding judges, mentors, and students participating from across the world, will come together virtually to create applications that address issues in diverse fields impacted by the virus, such as health, education, film, music, business, and science, solving problems created by COVID-19. For the first time, NYU Abu Dhabi Vice Chancellor Mariet Westermann will also serve as a judge.

Students will be divided into teams of between five to seven members and will be mentored by 35 experienced international industry and academic leaders while developing applications from ideation to delivery.

A mentor at the 2020 Annual NYUAD International Hackathon and Senior Manager at General Electric in the United States Sama Kanbour commented, "This is a difficult situation but certainly a powerful time where many of us see it as an opportunity to contribute to our communities, by proposing innovative solutions that hopefully can address emerging needs.

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Organiser, Founder and Chair for the Annual NYUAD International Hackathon, Sana Odeh, said, "We are living during an unprecedented time that requires us to come together across all borders to innovate and solve challenges caused by the devastation brought on by COVID-19. Our priority is building tech solutions to support vulnerable communities such as refugees who are facing life threatening situations with minimal support and resources, and also to solve problems related to the healthcare system such as symptom tracking and minimising exposure to others.

"We are proud to have more than 120 excellent students and mentors coming together from all over the world in just a three week time to participate in our international Hackathon to learn, be inspired and build creative apps tackling COVID-19 challenges and just may help make the world a better place."