Team Vanguards win Imagine Cup Pan Arab semi-finals

Manama : Microsoft Bahrain and Tamkeen celebrated the victory of Vanguards Team, who were announced one of the three winning teams of the Imagine Cup 2016 Pan Arab Semi-Finals that took place in Cairo from May 27 to 29. It will represent Bahrain and the Arab World in the games category at the 14th Imagine Cup World Finals in July.

“Apollo-X” the project of Team Vanguards, is a horror game that uses Virtual Reality, Biofeedback technology and a mobile phone. The game is adaptive and changes according to the player’s heart rate. As the player becomes more frightened, the scarier and more difficult the game becomes. 

This allows the player to become more aware of their feelings and they will try to stay calm. The game also features a multiplayer mode that allows a player on a PC to cooperate with a player on a mobile. 

Team Vanguards, from Bahrain Polytechnic, consists of Mahmood Saeed AlSarhani and Noof Fuad Abdulla; the Team’s mentor is Christos Gatzoulis. Commenting on their achievement, they said “We are thrilled to have won the Semi-Finals and we look forward to travelling to Seattle, competing on an international level and gaining wider experience and skills.”

Hamad Al Saei, Public Sector Lead, Microsoft Bahrain congratulated the team on its regional achievement, and said “We are pleased to see Team Vanguards innovate across Microsoft’s platforms and build a solution that enables people to achieve more through technology.” 

He added “The high quality work we have seen from Vanguards, last session and this session, indicates that it could be the start of real business that have potential to contribute to the Kingdom’s prosperity.” 

The Imagine Cup 2016 Pan Arab Semi-Finals witnessed the participation of 150 students in 37 teams, representing 13 Arab countries. It was the culmination of a months-long series of contests at national level that brought together the brightest young minds from across the Arab World. 

Teams of up to four students were required to create an original technology project from start to finish: create an idea, make a plan, build the project and present it to judging panels at the semi-finals. They were assessed on concept, execution, use of technology, relevance to their chosen category and feasibility.

Tamkeen’s Director of Marketing and Communications Hala Sulaiman said, “Our participation in such projects develops the entrepreneurial skills of young Bahrainis. Our long-term partnership with Microsoft Imagine Cup provided an unconventional channel to engage the youth towards an entrepreneurial mindset.” 

This year’s Imagine Cup Pan Arab Semi-Finals also hosted the #MakeWhatsNext Women Leadership Event. 

Stemming from Microsoft’s commitment to empowering women in technology and STEM, the event recognised successful women leaders and young role models across the Arab region.