The International Olympiad in Artificial Intelligence (IOAI) is the newest International Science Olympiad, modeling itself after the International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO) and International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI) but focused on AI. First held in 2024 in Burgas, Bulgaria, IOAI has quickly grown to 108 participating countries and territories across 6 continents, under the patronage of UNESCO.
Competition format:
IOAI combines theoretical AI knowledge with practical problem-solving across three core domains:
| Domain | Description |
|---|---|
| Machine Learning | Model training, evaluation, optimization |
| Natural Language Processing | Text understanding, generation, classification |
| Computer Vision | Image recognition, object detection, visual reasoning |
Who competes:
Each participating country selects a national team of 4 high school students, plus a team leader, through a national qualification process (the National Olympiad in AI, or NOAI); countries may field an optional second team of 4 on a first-come, first-served basis. At the international competition, students work on challenging AI tasks over a multi-day event that also includes academic talks, cultural programs, and networking with peers from around the world.
Financial accessibility:
Each national team pays a per-team registration fee that covers accommodation, meals, and local transportation during competition week; international travel and visa costs are typically covered separately by national programs and delegations. IOAI's Financial Aid Program waives the fee and/or provides travel support for one team and its leader from a limited number of accredited countries and IOAI GAITE countries each year, based on financial need and other criteria.
IOAI history:
| Year | Host City | Countries |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 (1st) | Burgas, Bulgaria | 32 |
| 2025 (2nd) | Beijing, China | 61 |
| 2026 (3rd) | Astana, Kazakhstan | 108 |
| 2027 (4th) | Singapore | TBA |
Getting involved:
If your country does not yet have a National Olympiad in AI, IOAI's GAITE initiative can help start one. Students interested in competing should look for their national AI olympiad or contact ioai-official.org for guidance on finding or establishing a national program.