Welcome to the Technovation Program Overview!
In this module, we’ll review the program’s objectives, structure, and key components.
BUILDING INNOVATORS FOR LIFE
We empower students to become leaders, technology innovators and real-world problem solvers around the world.
The people closest to a problem build solutions that actually work. Technovation gives youth the AI, tech, and entrepreneurship skills to tackle the world’s toughest challenges.
learners registered in 2026
countries/territories represented by learners and volunteers in 2026
tech-based solutions submitted in 2026
What do students do?
Students ages 8–18 work with mentors and/or educators to create technology-based solutions that tackle real challenges in their communities. Through this journey, students will:
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Identify a problem in their local or global community
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Build a working digital solution to address a community problem
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Create a business idea around the app
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Record one 4-minute video covering the pitch and the technical build
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Submit their project to Technovation's global competition
Learn more about our Submission Guidelines and Judging Rubric below:
PROGRAM STRUCTURE
FORM TEAMS
Students form teams of 1-5 individuals who want to solve a problem together
GUIDED LEARNING
Teams learn from the curriculum guided by Mentors who might be teachers, staff, or volunteers
BUILD A SOLUTION
Teams design a digital solution & complete all their project components
SUBMIT A PROJECT
Teams submit their projects to our global competitions & receive feedback from experts
What Technovation Students Make
- Written Description
Teams will answer questions about their project development, learning journey, and user adoption plan (junior division only). They will also reflect on at least two ethical considerations, such as data privacy, accessibility, algorithmic bias, or unintended consequences.
- Code
Students will build a functional digital solution for a real community problem and share its source code and AI tools.
Take a look at the awesome apps past teams have submitted in the Technovation App Gallery.
- Video
Teams will produce a 4-minute video explaining how they built and tested their solution, including the tools they used, how they debugged challenges, and how their solution improved.
- Business Canvas
A 1-page outline about how students plan to bring their solution to market and how they’ve applied user feedback to refine their product and grow their user base.
(Senior Division teams only)
What counts as a digital solution?
The solution must:
- involve coding and/or AI to solve a real problem
- be tested with real users, and
- have functional features.
Here are some examples:
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A mobile app (still welcome!)
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A web app. Note that websites that are not interactive are not eligible
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A programmed robot, drone, or gadget
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A browser extension or plugin
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A chatbot or AI assistant (e.g., on WhatsApp, Telegram, or a website)
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An SMS or voice-based tool
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A data dashboard
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An automated workflow or AI agent
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A Scratch project (Beginner division only)
Age Divisions
Teams compete in one of three age divisions. Check out the differentiated project requirements below!
👉 Explore the Curriculum and Judging Rubrics specific to each division.
Beginner Division
Ages 8–12
What They Build:
- Digital Solution
- 4-minute video
- Written Description
Junior Division
Ages 13–15
What They Build:
- Digital Solution
- 4-minute video
- Written Description (includes the User Adoption Plan)
Senior Division
Ages 16–18
What They Build:
- Digital Solution
- 4-minute video
- Written Description
- Business Canvas
THE ROLE OF CHAPTER & CLUB LEADERS
Chapter & Club Leaders play a crucial role in the success of Technovation in their local communities. Key responsibilities include:
- Determine When & Where the Program Will Happen
Chapter Leaders are responsible for planning the program schedule and choosing a location that is accessible to participants. This may include schools, after school program sites, libraries, community centers, or virtual platforms.
- Identify Staff and/or Volunteers
Identify adults to facilitate the program. They may be educators, staff or volunteer mentors. It’s helpful to have a lead facilitator and, if available, Mentors for each team. Consider partnering with local universities, tech companies, or nonprofits.
- Recruit & Oversee Student Teams
Chapter & Club Leaders promote the program, oversee student learning and support teams to register & submit to the global competition. Encourage participation by reaching out to schools and youth-serving organizations. Ensure students connect with Mentors, access resources, and progress toward submission.
- Serve as the Main Point of Contact
Chapter & Club Leaders are the primary liaison between Technovation and your local community. Share success stories, photos, and feedback regularly. If you encounter challenges, please reach out early so the Technovation team can help. Contact HQ anytime at [email protected].
Program Implementation Timeline
Planning out the Technovation season is key to your Chapter’s success.
The timeline below offers a high-level view of the program phases. Be sure to consult the comprehensive Official Season Timeline, which includes dates for all critical deadlines.
THE GLOBAL COMPETITION
- Every team receives personalized feedback and scores from industry experts
- Scholarships are awarded to regional winners and finalists for each division
- Top-scoring global finalists in the Girls Track are invited to pitch their projects live at the World Summit
- Finalists have the opportunity to network with mentors, peers, and industry leaders from around the world.
Judging and Awards Structure
Click on each tab below to see how the judging process works:
All project components created by the teams, including their code, video, written section, and business canvas (senior division) are submitted on our platform
In the first round of judging, projects are judged in one of two ways:
- Online Judging: Teams’ submissions are reviewed digitally by assigned judges.
- In-Person Regional Pitch Events (RPEs): Chapters may host a Regional Pitch Event (RPE), where teams present their projects live to a panel of judges. RPEs must follow a set a guidelines to officially count.
Semifinalists are judged online. Becoming a Semifinalist is a significant achievement for the students! After this second round of judging, Finalists and Regional Winners are announced for each division.
Final judging for the Girls Track takes place at the World Summit, where participants present their pitches and compete for grand prizes. The event may include workshops, networking with global tech leaders, and highlights shared with the entire Technovation community.
Mixed Track finalists receive scholarships and additional celebration opportunities. More info coming soon!
The graphic on the right shows the judging stages for the Technovation Challenge Girls Track.
The Mixed Track will follow the same structure but may involve a different number of finalists.
Awards Overview
Finalists
15 teams globally receive a $500 stipend per person and participate in the World Summit. 3 Grand Prize Winners receive a $750 stipend.
Regional Honors
15 teams across 5 world regions receive $250 stipend per person.
For more details, visit the Judging & Awards Structure page.
PLATFORM ESSENTIALS
Get Ready for the New Technovation Platform!
We’re rebuilding the Technovation platform to make it easier to manage your local programs and support our growing global community. We’ll be adding video tutorials to help you get familiar with the new platform as features become available.
In the meantime, here are some of the new features to look forward to:
- Roster uploads: Create student accounts from a roster
- Affiliation codes: Chapters and Clubs will have a unique code for students and Mentors to enter at registration to automatically affiliate with their local program
- Public / Private: Chapters and Clubs can set themselves as public or private, which will determine whether they are visible to external participants
- Tiered Management Structure: Chapters will be able to create sites and clubs/classes under their Chapter to better reflect their local program structure. Leaders at each level will just have access to participants in their tier. Chapter Leaders see all levels.
The new platform will open for registration in October. We know this is later than usual and are committed to supporting you through the transition. If needed, Chapters and Clubs can collect registrations using a separate system in the meantime and upload those registrations once the new platform opens.
Intellectual Property
Any digital solutions, prototypes, or businesses developed for Technovation are the intellectual property of student participants.
Volunteers and Technovation do NOT have intellectual property rights to the ideas, digital solutions, student-generated databases, business canvases and user adoption plans.
Safety
Technovation is committed to maintaining a safe environment for students. Please review & ensure your participants follow these safety guidelines.
