Tunisia’s Team Night Watch took second-place in the World Citizenship category in the recent Microsoft Imagine Cup competition, walking away with US$10,000 in prize money.
Team Night Watch was rewarded for its prosthetic smart hand for those that have lost limbs – Smart Hand.
The Imagine Cup is Microsoft’s premier global student technology competition, with the final seeing 35 teams go head-to-head in various categories for the chance to win US$50,000 and a private mentoring session with Microsoft chief executive officer (CEO) Satya Nadella.
Aside from Team Night Watch, teams from Nigeria and South Africa – as well as another from Tunisia – were also selected for the global final following a succession of national finals and the world semi-finals, which saw 150 teams pitch and judged by a global panel of MVPs, industry experts and Microsoft staff.
The Humane Team from Nigeria also took part in the World Citizenship category, but went home empty-handed, as did Digital Interactive, which represented South Africa in the Games category. Tunisian project Basilisk took part in the Innovations category for its ProtectMe device, but was also not a winner.
“Year in and year out, these young developers never cease to amaze me with their inspiring and creative ideas as they attempt to mould the world around them through the power of technology,” said Pablo Veramendi, Imagine Cup competition manager.
“The ingenuity of this year’s World Finalist teams is impressive. From incredible game concepts, to life-saving devices, to solutions that could revolutionise the way we do business – no one will leave Imagine Cup untouched or uninspired by these ideas by the time the competition is over and a new champion is chosen.”
