ChampionS$2,000
- 1st Runner-upS$1,000
- 2nd Runner-upS$500
- Community ChoiceS$300
PRIZES
Play for real prizes, in your own world.
Trophies and cash prizes in every division, plus eight Special Awards: S$35,550 in total. Each division is judged on its own, so you only play against teams in your division.
PER TEAM
What each world plays for
ChampionS$5,000
- 1st Runner-upS$2,500
- 2nd Runner-upS$1,250
- Community ChoiceS$500
ChampionS$10,000
- 1st Runner-upS$5,000
- 2nd Runner-upS$2,500
- Community ChoiceS$1,000
+ 8 Special Awards, S$500 each, open to teams in every world
- Best AI Innovation
- Best AI Agent
- Best Robotics & Embodied AI
- Best Design & User Experience
- Most Creative Idea
- Best Real-World Application
- Best Social Impact
- Best Pitch
Prize money is per team, and the team agrees how to share it.
EVERYONE
What you take home
Every valid project
A participation e-certificate for each team member on Fri 22 Jan, whether or not you come to Demo Weekend.
Finalists
Your project on stage at Finals Day, Sat 16 Jan, in front of the judges, and a finalist certificate.
Winners
The prize money and an award certificate, presented at Showcase & Awards Day on Sun 17 Jan. Trophies in every division.
How prizes work
- Placings. Each division’s Champion, 1st Runner-up and 2nd Runner-up come from its finalists, across all four quests. A division with five or more finalist teams awards all three places; with 3–4, Champion only. Placings aren’t split by quest, and there’s no overall champion.
- Community Choice. One per division, voted in the room on Sun 17 Jan by checked-in participants, one vote per project.
- Special Awards. Open to teams in every division. How they’re chosen will be published on the Judging page. Community Choice and Special Awards are paid in cash or as a voucher of the same value.
- Challenge Awards. Each Challenge partner sets one bonus brief from the YCESS template; any team can answer it; the partner names the prize.
- Payment. Paid per team within 30 days of the event (by Tue 16 Feb). Each winning team names one person to receive it, and a parent receives it for a minor. We collect payment details only from winning teams, after the event.
- Fair play. An award may be left unfilled if there’s a serious breach of the rules or no project meets the minimum requirements. YAI Ambassador recognition has no cash value.
Back the prize fund
Organisations can support the prize fund as a YAI partner, and are credited at the awards, by partner type. Partners never influence scores.