The Arab Youth Center and the Dubai Chamber launched the first regional Hackathon for electronic games
Abu Dhabi, October 3 / WAM / The Arab Youth Center in Abu Dhabi announced, in partnership with the Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy, the launch of the second edition of the “Arab Youth Hackathon 2025-2026” program, with a copy dedicated to electronic games under the slogan “Electronic Games .. Arab Identity”, as the first integrated regional program that provides young people with the opportunity to innovate and develop original games inspired by Arab culture and identity, and gives them a global platform To highlight their creative abilities in the game industry.
The center opened the door for registration for talented youth from all over the Arab world who have skills in programming, design, digital art, movement and visual effects, to join the teams participating in the Hakathon, through the electronic platform:
The program, which is held in a strategic partnership with the Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy and the “Games Ventures”, and in cooperation with the “Futuregames” Foundation, aims to build a new generation of Arab developers capable of combining Arab narratives and modern technologies, and enhancing the region’s presence in one of the fastest growing industries in the world, where the size of the electronic game market exceeds $ 295 billion annually, and it is expected that It reaches $ 600 billion by 2030.
Fifty young men and women from the Arab games developers participate in the hackathon at the beginning of their career, representing various Arab countries, and they will be chosen according to accurate criteria that include technical skills and the ability to work in the spirit of the team and adhere to the requirements of the program, in addition to having appropriate technical equipment and a good level of English that allows them to communicate effectively with experts and international mentors.
The program is launched with a three -month training path in an environment that simulates the studios of world games development, and provides participants with practical experiences through workshops, specialized lessons and supervision of international experts, and concludes during the World Government Summit in February 2026, where participants offer five games of their production with cinematic shows and live experiences in front of a global audience of decision makers and gaming industry leaders.
Participants will distribute five teams, each team includes 10 individuals with various backgrounds that include design, programming, art, movement and visual effects, reflecting the nature of the work of major studios.
Each team will have the opportunity to work in a practical training environment that combines practical training, individual counseling and theoretical and applied lessons, provided by international experts from the major gaming development companies.
His Excellency Dr. Sultan bin Saif Al -Neyadi, Minister of State for Youth Affairs, Vice President of the Arab Youth Center, stressed that the Arab region with its wide youth base, civilized and cultural wealth and growing opportunities in the digital economy is eligible to be an active partner in this world sector, indicating that the hackathon reflects the position of the UAE as an incubator for innovation and a regional center to enable youth energies.
Saeed Al -Garqawi, Vice President of the Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy, said that young people are a basic pillar of economic development and a major incentive for innovation and creativity in the fields related to the future economy, stressing the importance of partnership with the Arab Youth Center in the launch of the hackathon to enhance the UAE’s role in supporting young Arab competencies and developing its digital and creative skills in line with the targets of the Dubai Economic Agenda (D33).
Engineer Fatima Al -Hakmi, Executive Director of the Arab Youth Center, explained that the Hakathon allows Arab youth a platform to highlight their talents and turn their ideas into a competitive digital content that reflects the Arab culture in the global game industry.
Mohamed El -Sheikh, founder and CEO of “Games Ventures”, pointed out that Arab youth possess huge creative energies that qualify them to form the future of the game industry, stressing that the partnership with the Arab Youth Center represents a practical step to support their talents and turn their aspirations into influential projects that reflect the Arab identity and inspire the world.
The Hakathon program extends over a period of three months according to a schedule that includes the score and selection phase in October 2025, and the development of preliminary models in December, to the final version in January 2026, in preparation for the presentation to the public during the World Government Summit in February 2026.
In its second edition, “Arab Youth Hackathon” revolves around the development of original fictional games, to serve as a creative laboratory that is inspired by the Arab cultural and civilizational heritage to build worlds and stories capable of competing with major global games productions, and highlighting Arab culture as a rich source of ideas and modern interactive content.
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