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ACCENTURE has launched its first ever international connected hackathon, in collaboration with Expo 2020 Dubai, pitting talented young people from eight cities in Europe and Asia against each other.
Participants in Rome, London, Madrid, Amsterdam, Dortmund, Prague, Istanbul and Dubai will join the 24-hour challenge on Nov. 26-27. The competition is open to young graduates and undergraduates with expertise in development, design and marketing.
The Accenture Digital Connected Hackathon, the theme of which is “Connect. Collaborate. Create”, draws its inspiration directly from Expo 2020 Dubai’s core theme ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’. The competition aims to encourage collaboration and inspire the creation of social innovation projects for a more inclusive future.
Participants will be asked to focus on the three themes at the center of the World Expo to be held in Dubai in 2020:
Opportunity: to increase access to employment and reduce the digital divide
Mobility: to eliminate physical and technological barriers that impede the productive flow of goods, people and ideas and improve the handling of emergencies
Sustainability: to promote sustainable lifestyles and boost awareness of the impact of climate change
They will have to build innovative, scalable and replicable application prototypes by using technologies such as the sensors and connected devices that help make up the Internet of Things, Analytics, Artificial Intelligence, Augmented and Virtual Reality and blockchains.
Tony Karam, managing director of Accenture Digital in the Middle East and North Africa, said, “Our professionals work to realize the immense potential of digital technologies every day, and by combining their expertise in mobility, analytics and digital marketing, create solutions capable of accelerating business innovation and growth. Collaboration as part of multidisciplinary teams forms the basis of how we at Accenture work and achieve results for clients, and this eight city ‘connected hackathon’ will reproduce the spirit in which our professionals approach their work every day, based on an openness to collaboration and innovation.”
Hala Ghandour, chief development officer at Expo 2020 Dubai, said, “Technology connects us more closely than ever. It enables us to communicate and cooperate in ways that can change our lives. Expo 2020 Dubai is excited to be collaborating with Accenture in its connected hackathon. We look forward to exploring ideas and innovations that could shape our World Expo in 2020.”
Francisco Salcedo, senior vice president of Digital Services at Etisalat, said, “This hackathon is an invitation to the youth around the world to be active enablers in developing the technology we will witness at Expo2020. It’s also a great example on the collaborative efforts between Etisalat Digital and our partners to develop stellar experiences for Expo2020.”
The Accenture Digital Connected Hackathon is open to teams of talented young people (with three to five members), and individual participants. Each location will be virtually connected, and there will be an alternating series of games, known as “hackgames”, and in-depth “Live talks,” consisting of lessons tutored by digital experts.
During the competition, experts from Accenture will mentor participating teams and individuals, helping to define and develop their project concepts. The projects will be assessed according to the strength of their concept, design and development, and each will be presented to a local jury composed of representatives of Expo 2020 Dubai, experts from different partners in each country, and Accenture Digital team members. Dubai’s local partners for the event will be Etisalat Digital, Google and Facebook.
The prizes will be awarded to the three highest ranked projects in each city, with the overall winning entries chosen from the first place local winners by an international panel of judges. In addition, Expo 2020 Dubai will award a special prize - the chance to present the winning project to the organizers of Expo 2020.
Individual participants whose teamwork, problem-solving and goal orientation impress the judges, and whose profiles are in line with Accenture’s recruitment plans in the participating countries, may be offered internships or employment in Accenture Digital, or elsewhere in the company.
The Accenture Digital Connected Hackathon in Dubai, due to be held in Dubai Internet City on Nov. 26 and 27, will take place at Accenture’s Digital Acceleration Center.
Registration for the Hackathon is completely free of charge and is open until Nov. 22 at: accenture.ae/DigitalHackathon
The Accenture Digital Connected Hackathon aligns closely with Expo 2020 Dubai’s initiatives to encourage and inspire young people in the region to explore the opportunities available to them. Other youth-focused initiatives of Expo 2020 Dubai include YouthConnect, the Apprenticeship Programme, HIPA international photography awards, as well as a series of university roadshows.
Accenture is a leading global professional services company, providing a broad range of services and solutions in strategy, consulting, digital, technology and operations.
Combining unmatched experience and specialized skills across more than 40 industries and all business functions – underpinned by the world’s largest delivery network – Accenture works at the intersection of business and technology to help clients improve their performance and create sustainable value for their stakeholders.
With approximately 384,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries, Accenture drives innovation to improve the way the world works and lives.
Accenture Digital, comprised of Accenture Analytics, Accenture Interactive and Accenture Mobility, offers a comprehensive portfolio of business and technology services across digital marketing, mobility and analytics. From developing digital strategies to implementing digital technologies and running digital processes on their behalf, Accenture Digital helps clients leverage connected and mobile devices; extract insights from data using analytics; and enrich end-customer experiences and interactions, delivering tangible results from the virtual world and driving growth.
Expo 2020 Dubai is guided by the belief that innovation and progress are the result of people and ideas combining in new ways. Over the course of six months from October 2020, Expo aims to bring together hundreds of countries and millions of people to celebrate human ingenuity: ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’. — SG
