Mubasher: Two Lebanon-based companies as well as a firm based in Saudi Arabia were the top three winners of the regional entrepreneurship programme Arab Youth Hackathon, which is spearheaded by PepsiCo along with PepsiCo Foundation and the Arab Youth Center (AYC).
Represented by Afif Wehbe, Green Taqa from Lebanon topped the participants and won the first prize of seed money worth $30,000 to scale its idea of converting organic materials into methane to produce clean energy, which can later be used to generate electricity, according to a press release.
Saudi Arabia-based Cropsense, represented by Murtadha Alnasser, came in the second place with a prize worth $20,000 for their idea of securing the runner-up position with their artificial intelligence (AI)-generated system to provide farmers with essential insights that allow them to make decisions based on data.
Arab Youth Hackathon aims at gathering emerging entities in the region that work on creating smarter solutions for climate-related issues in agriculture, circular economy, water security, and renewable energy.
A total of 15 promising solutions made it to the final to combat climate change, coming from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, and Lebanon as part of the Arab Youth Hackathon’s first edition that was held at the Youth Hub at COP28 in Dubai.
The third top winner was Luxeed Robotics from Lebanon, which received $10,000 worth of prize. Represented by Guadaluna Chaer, the agrytech pre-seed startup employs advanced technology to revolutionise organic farming.
PepsiCo Foundation is giving equity-free seed funds at a total value of $60,000 for the top winner, the runner-up, and the second runner-up. The three winners will further participate in a one-month incubation programme to help them develop and scale their ideas and secure long-term success.
CEO – Africa, Middle East and South Asia at PepsiCo, Eugene Willemsen, said: “We announced the launch of the Arab Youth Hackathon at COP27 last year. One year on, it’s inspiring to engage with young innovators and bring their ideas to life at COP28, through the biggest youth hackathon programme in the region.”
Willemsen added: “Seeing the immense potential of youth to activate new thinking and action for a sustainable future, energises the important topic of urgent climate action, which is a focal point of COP28 here in Dubai.”
The regional CEO added: “Collaboration between generations and across the industry has been at the heart of this success, and we hope it serves as a stepping stone to forefront the region as an innovation hub powered by young changemakers.”
Meanwhile, Arab Youth Center’s Projects Team Lead, Haya Aseer, said: “The process of engaging young people, understanding their ideas, developing their vision, and seeing the growth in actionable ideas, has been inspiring.”
Aseer added: “Our hope is that the innovations awarded in this Arab Youth Hackathon will emerge to become the real, meaningful beacons of hope we need to transform and achieve a sustainable future.”
Seena Amidi, Managing Partner – Plug and Play EMEA, said: “We at Plug and Play, are proud to support our partners but also the three hackathon champions Green Taqa, Cropsense, and Luxeed Robotics as we bring them onboard in our globally recognized open innovation platform.”
During the COP28 event, Samsung Electronics MENA and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) launched ACT28 AI for Climate Hackathon to support regional youth efforts exerted for climate change and advance sustainable development.
