HCMC – Artificial intelligence (AI) projects won top prizes at this year’s Bach Khoa Innovation startup competition, with student teams recognised for solutions aimed at practical uses and sustainable development, the organiser said.
The annual contest, organised by the HCMC University of Technology under the Vietnam National University HCMC, drew 189 entries, nearly triple the average of previous years.
Eighteen teams from countries and territories, including India, Indonesia, Russia, the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Myanmar, France, Japan, and the U.S., took part. Three overseas teams reached the startup category final.
Projects featured AI tools such as voice assistants for cars, digital prescription management, AI drone inventory systems, smart helmets, mental health support platforms, AI assistants for the visually impaired, and centralized learning systems. Sustainability-focused entries included snacks from jackfruit seeds, drinks from coffee husks, bio-ink from tomato peels, fermented cashew jelly, and carbon recycling from water hyacinths.
Since its launch in 2018, the competition has attracted 646 projects from high schools, universities and startups in Vietnam and abroad.
This year’s top prizes went to a multi-intelligence education app for preschool and primary school students by the University of Economics HCMC in the student category, a smart desk-and-chair system by Nam Sai Gon High School in HCMC in the high school category, and a high-precision hand rehabilitation platform for post-stroke patients by HCMC University of Technology in the startup category.
