Artificial Intelligence start-up, Kwame AI Inc. is gearing up for its maiden hackathon focused on developing open-source, AI-powered tools that would aid students in preparing for the National Science and Maths Quiz (NSMQ) and STEM education.

Dubbed the AfricAIED 2024 Hackathon, the month-long online event is attracting global participants to leverage their AI and programming expertise in crafting solutions to enhance preparation for the annual competition.

Chief Executive and Cofounder of Kwame AI, Dr. George Jojo Boateng, observes inequitable access to educational and preparation materials for the quiz is a blight on the successes of certain schools participating in the quiz.

“There is a lot of inequity in preparations for Ghana’s National Science and Math Quiz (NSMQ) where resources such as study materials, great teachers, etc, are available only to the big-name high schools that then almost always make it to the semi-finals and finals, and win,” Dr. Boateng said.

He continued that: “the goal of this challenge is to crowdsource AI-powered tools to democratize preparation for the NSMQ and give all schools a fair chance at winning the NSMQ”.

Developers, AI enthusiasts and educators passionate about leveraging artificial intelligence for educational advancement are encouraged to participate.

They stand a chance of winning the grand prize of $1,000 while the second and third place performing teams receive $500 and $250 respectively.

The hackathon, running from 21st May to 17th June 2024 serves as a lead-up event to the 2nd AfricAIED workshop, organized by Kwame AI.

The workshop aims to foster collaboration, knowledge-sharing, and innovation in leveraging AI for educational development across the continent.