Event Details

About
Instructions for Participants
Instructions for Mentors
Agenda

Are you ready to share the future?

We are searching for talented young innovators to join our AI competition and showcase your skills! This is your opportunity to push the boundaries of technology and make an impact.

Teams first submit a poster based on a given theme. Each team will be paired with a mentor from our current SoIT students or alumni. Each team then prepares a video explaining their poster, posting it on Instagram. The best 10 teams have been selected to move on to the final round. During the final round on the event day, each team creates a prototype / mock of their vision and presents it to the judges.

Who can apply

Participants: Form 4 & Form 5 students
Mentors: Current students/alumni of School of IT

Why join

Win exciting prizes
Scholarships & Recognition
Discover your passion for AI & Technology
Get a head start on your journey to higher education in IT

Qualifying Round

Venue: Online
Open for registration: April 2026
Result announcement: July 2026

Final Round

Venue: Monash University Malaysia, Jalan Lagoon Selatan, Bandar Sunway, 47500 Subang Jaya, Selangor.
Date: 18 July 2026

Wildcard

As a reward for winning the 2025 Challenge Cup Championship, the highest-scoring team from Chung Ling High School this year will be automatically shortlisted as a finalist.
The top 9 teams with the highest scores from the remaining participants will also be shortlisted, forming our 10 finalist teams.
Seize this opportunity to win this year’s edition and pave the way for your future and that of your juniors!

Sustainable Development Goals

The Monash AI Challenge Cup 2026 supports the following Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs):

To enter the competition:
- Form a team consisting of 2 to 3 members. Although solo participation is allowed, it is highly recommended to form a team with 2 to 3 members. Decide on a creative name for the team.
- Once the group is formed, each group will be assigned a mentor from Monash School of Information Technology.
- Register for the competition HERE.
Things to submit:
- Design a poster proposing an AI-driven FinTech solution under one of the following tracks:
  - Finance Meets the Feed: Teams design an AI FinTech solution inspired by a current social media behaviour or trend.
    - Examples: An AI-powered chatbot that converts financial tips into short, engaging, social-media-style educational content etc.
  - Smart Finance for Creators: Teams imagine AI-powered financial tools that support digital creators, freelancers, or side hustles.
    - Examples: A brand-collaboration matching tool that recommends partnerships based on selected categories, audience size, and engagement tiers etc.
- Teams are required to clearly identify how their proposed solution supports one or more of the following Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs):
  1. SDG 4: Quality Education
  2. SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
  3. SDG 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
  4. SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities
  5. SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production
  6. SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
- Prepare a 90 seconds reel to pitch your idea. Judges will only consider the content up to the time limit and ignore any additional content.
  - Follow the Instagram page of this event: monash.ai.challenge.cup
  - Post the reel to your team’s Instagram (personal/school profile is acceptable). Make sure the account uploading the video is public.
  - In the Tag people section, tag the Instagram page of this event (monash.ai.challenge.cup).
  - Include the following in the caption:
- Upload your submission HERE, including:
  - Team designed poster
  - Link to team’s 90-second Instagram Reel
Poster format:
- File Type: JPEG or PDF
- File Size: 50 mb or less
- Orientation: Landscape and portrait orientation are acceptable
- Must be a single page
- Include team name, school name and team member name(s)
Video Specifications:
- Duration: 90 seconds
- Video file format: mp4
- Aspect ratio: 16:9 or 9:16
- Title/Selected SDG theme
- Problem statement: Define the specific issue, gap or challenge that poster/storyboard aims to address. Eg:
  - Despite the growth of digital financial services, social media–driven trends and viral content have introduced new challenges for responsible money management. Impulsive spending, hype-driven purchasing, and short-lived viral fads make it difficult to promote financial literacy and sustainable financial behaviours. These challenges hinder progress towards SDGs 4, 8, and 12, which aim to support education, economic growth, and responsible consumption.
- Background of the problem: Narrow the focus to a manageable scope. Eg:
  - Social media platforms often amplify trending products, influencer promotions, and viral challenges that can trigger impulsive financial behaviours. This creates a specific, manageable challenge: how to design AI-driven FinTech solutions that detect, interpret, or respond to social media trends to encourage smarter, more responsible financial decision-making. By focusing on this behaviour, participants can develop creative, practical solutions that address real-world challenges in digital finance.
- Objective(s): Outline the specific objective(s) that the solution aims to achieve. It can be more than 1 objective. Eg:
  - Objective 1: To analyse patterns in viral content, influencer promotions, or trending products that may influence spending behaviour.
  - Objective 2: …
- Solution: Method to solve the problem and how can AI be involved in solving the problem. Eg:
- Example:
Poster in portrait orientation
Poster in landscape orientation
What the shortlisted teams need to do:
- Brainstorm ideas on how to bring the vision of the poster to life through a prototype involving AI.
- The shortlisted teams will attempt to realize their vision through a prototype using any platform or tech stack (e.g., Firebase), assisted by their mentor.
- Include all your pitching materials in a PDF and submit HERE.
- Attend the final round at Monash University Malaysia (Refer to Event Details > ABOUT)
- Give a 10 minute presentation (including setup time) on the prototype to the judges on the event day.

Monash AI Challenge Cup is an exciting AI-based competition designed exclusively for high school students. We would prioritize for you to mentor your alma maters -- leading them to success and leaving your mark behind.

How to join:

Complete the online application form HERE.
Be ready to participate in any required training or orientation sessions to familiarize yourself with the competition’s structure and expectations.
Be prepared to commit the necessary time and effort throughout the competition period.

Responsibilities:

Guide 1 - 2 teams and provide advice and insights to help participants develop their ideas and projects.
Offer constructive feedback to improve the quality and feasibility of participants’ work for the qualifying round 1 and final round 2.
Facilitate connections between participants and academic advisors.
Attend the final round held in Monash University Malaysia.

Recognition and Compensation:

Upon completion of the competition, you will receive a Certificate and event T-shirt. If your is shortlisted to the final, you will receive a RM200 grab voucher. If your team won one of the top three prizes, you will receive a referral letter from the academic advisors.

The recruitment form will close on 1 June 2026, at 11:59 PM, or once all participant teams have been assigned a mentor. Further details will be shared after the application period has closed.

Rolling out soon…