KUCHING: Kuching will be the location for the first Sarawak–Singapore Friendship AI Vibe Design Hackathon in Sarawak which will take place on 6 September.

The programme, jointly organised by Angkatan Zaman Mansang (AZAM) Sarawak and AI Visionary Society from Singapore, brought together 40 participants including 10 international participants from Taiwan, Belarus, Canada, the United States, and Singapore, as well as 30 local participants from universities in Sarawak.

Founder of AI Visionary Society, Soh Wan Wei said the creativity of Sarawak's youth and the cultural diversity that exists in the state were the main inspirations for organising the hackathon.

"Design is in the DNA of Sarawakians. I was inspired when the Premier of Sarawak talked about AI not just being a technology, but also how it benefits the people," she told UKAS during her visit to the Sarawak Legislative Assembly Complex and Tegas Digital Village here, on Wednesday.

Soh also expressed her excitement to collaborate with the Tabung Ekonomi Gagasan Anak Sarawak (TEGAS) for future projects, following her visit to Tegas Digital Village.

AZAM Sarawak Chief Executive Officer, Ali Suhaili stressed that the hackathon provides a space for local youth to showcase their creativity using artificial intelligence (AI) towards the creation of products that have the potential to penetrate the international market.

"We want to provide an opportunity for Sarawakian children to showcase their creativity using AI, thus penetrating the international market. Next year, we plan to organise it in Miri with a larger participation of around 60 participants," he said.

Meanwhile, TEGAS Chief Executive Officer, Udin Bujang said that he welcomed Soh's interest in returning to Sarawak and utilising the facilities at Tegas Digital Village in making future projects a success.

"She is very interested in the facilities here and expressed her desire to collaborate with Tegas and AZAM in implementing AI-related programmes in the future," he explained.

Also present were Deputy Minister in the Sarawak Premier's Department (Corporate Affairs, Information and UKAS), Datuk Abdullah Saidol, and UKAS Deputy Director, Mohamed Faizal Shah Ali. -UKASnews