Indian-American Students Among White House AI Challenge Winners
Washington — Several Indian-American students were among the national champions honored at the White House on Tuesday as First Lady Melania Trump recognized winners of the inaugural Presidential AI Challenge, a nationwide competition that drew more than 20,000 participants.
The Indian-origin winners included a five-member team from Aldie, Virginia, whose “Friendzone Chatbot Bullying Prevention App” won the Elementary School Track 2 category. The team included Aarna Jaiswal, Eshani Khatri, Riva Madda, Samhitha Pinnamareddy and Sanuli Rathnayake.
Another winning team included Viha Iyer, Arya Pratap and Shrimayi Shetty of NorthStar Middle School in Sammamish, Washington. Their project, “SkillUp,” won the Middle School Track 1 category.
In the high school division, Khandakar Mahin of Upper Darby Senior High School in Pennsylvania won the national title in Track 1 for his project, “Utilising Computer Vision for Hotel Room Identification in Criminal Investigations.” Organizers said Mahin will graduate from high school this week and attend Harvard University in the fall.
Speaking at the awards ceremony, Trump praised the students as the country’s future innovators.
“It is wonderful to see this very impressive group of innovators at the White House. I’m proud that you represent the best of America. You are our future,” she said.
The Presidential AI Challenge drew entries from all 50 U.S. states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and Department of Defense schools overseas.
“The first Presidential AI Challenge was broadly welcomed across our nation. More than 20,000 students participated across all 50 states, plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and 49 Department of War schools in 10 countries around the world,” Melania Trump said.
The First Lady said the competition was intended to encourage innovation and help young people explore the potential of artificial intelligence.
“Today is about opening doors. When new doors open, passions flow, courage blossoms, and dreams are realised. AI inspires,” she said.
She urged participants to “continue to build boldly” and help “safeguard America’s leading position in the world of technology.”
According to the White House, the winning projects addressed a wide range of issues, including education, bullying prevention, criminal investigations, accessibility for visually impaired people and urban development.
The event also honored two educator champion teams from North Carolina and New Jersey. After the ceremony, participants attended a reception in the White House Rose Garden.
Artificial intelligence has become a major focus of U.S. education and technology policy as Washington seeks to maintain its competitive edge in advanced technologies. Policymakers have increasingly encouraged AI literacy and innovation among students.
Indian-Americans have long been prominent in the U.S. technology sector, leading major companies, research institutions and startups. Their strong showing among the winners reflects the growing role of Indian-origin students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics education across the United States. (Source: IANS)
