Kazakh school student claims silver at the International Olympiad in AI

For the first time, an Olympiad of this level took place in Central Asia, bringing together young researchers, scientists, and experts from around the world.

Approximately 500 participants, mentors, and jury members from 106 countries participated in the competitions. Over the week, students were solving real-world challenges in machine learning, computer vision, natural language processing, and other AI fields, while also attending educational, scientific, and cultural programs.

A special stage of the Olympiad was the Team Challenge, where international teams worked on applied problems using AI technologies.

Hosting IOAI 2026 marked the largest international educational event in AI ever organized in Kazakhstan. Preparation took only a few months and united the efforts of the Kazakhstan Sports Programming Federation, government bodies, the international organizing committee, partners, jury members, experts, hundreds of volunteers, and the organizing team. Owing to this joint work, the competition was held to international standards, the ministry noted.

"Over 100 countries and around 500 participants demonstrate to what extent the competition for AI talent has become global. It is especially important that Kazakhstan hosted an International AI Olympiad of this level for the first time, and that a Kazakh student made it into the top three, taking second place. We are consistently building the necessary ecosystem in the country: developing computing infrastructure, creating the Alem.ai International Center for Artificial Intelligence, and investing in training a new generation of specialists. We want young Kazakhstanis to do more than use AI technologies – to create them and compete with the world's best professionals," said Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development Zhaslan Madiyev.

The top three winners of the individual round were:

• 1st place – Artem Gorokhov (Russia)
• 2nd place – Dauzhan Beketov (Kazakhstan)
• 3rd place – Shao Zixi (China)

The Team Challenge awards included:

• Best Demonstration Award – New Zealand
• Creative Robot Design Award – Hong Kong
• AI-Native Robotics Award – Brazil

Kazakhstan Sports Programming Federation President Bagdat Mussin thanked all those involved in preparing and hosting the Olympiad.

"In just four months, we managed to prepare and host a world-class Olympiad. This was made possible thanks to the Head of State's support, collaboration of government bodies, international partners, jury members, team leaders, volunteers, and the entire organizing team. I sincerely thank everyone who was part of this great event. We aimed to create not merely a competition platform but a space where the international AI community takes shape, where new ideas, friendships, and future joint projects are born," Mussin underlined.

Beyond the competition program, participants explored Kazakhstan's state-of-the-art infrastructure, visited the Alem.ai International Center for Artificial Intelligence, attended cultural events, and took part in networking opportunities, building professional and personal connections with peers from around the world.

Hosting IOAI 2026 was a landmark step in strengthening international cooperation in AI and confirmed Kazakhstan's readiness to host major global educational and technology events, the ministry highlighted.

The Olympiad's main outcome was not only the participants' achievements, but the creation of a strong platform for further international collaboration among young researchers. It is these students who will shape the future of AI, create new technologies, and drive the global digital economy in the years ahead.

Earlier, it was reported that the Astana AI Film Festival drew over 1,900 submissions from more than 90 countries.