A series of major hackathon competitions concluded across Africa and the Middle East in early November 2026, with winners spanning technology, cybersecurity, healthcare, and financial innovation sectors.
In Dubai, Strive claimed victory at the ICC Global Hackathon held at the Dubai AI Festival on November 4, 2026, earning USD 5,000 in prize money. The team's web platform is designed to increase athlete monetization and discovery.
The same day in Abu Dhabi, the ADNOC AI Hackathon final concluded at ADNEC Centre, focusing on energy-sector cybersecurity and critical-infrastructure defense. Saif Alzaabi secured first place, followed by Theyab Alzaabi in second place and Rowdah Alhosani in third place.
In Uganda on November 5, 2026, ISBAT University's team, ISBAT1, won the Centenary Bank Cybersecurity Hackathon. Tarus X from Victoria University placed second, while Fraud Hunters, also from Victoria University, secured third place. Sseruwooza Uthman received the Best Individual Student Award.
Nigeria's financial sector celebrated innovation at the Ecobank InnovateX Hackathon on November 5, 2026, where Team Vhorde emerged as champion, claiming ₦5 million from a total prize pool of ₦22 million distributed among finalists. E-Nation finished as first runner-up with ₦4 million, while Konvoy placed second runner-up with ₦3.5 million. Twenty finalist teams collectively shared the remaining awards, with 20th place receiving ₦500,000.
Qatar University announced results from its Health Tech Hackathon 2025, with winners recognized across two competitive tracks. HandOsteoVision won the Launchpad Track with a 50,000 QAR prize, followed by HERO (40,000 QAR) and OryxMed (30,000 QAR) in second and third places respectively. In the Spark Track, PillPal claimed first place with 40,000 QAR, with Shifa earning 30,000 QAR for second place and ATF receiving 20,000 QAR for third place.
The competitions reflect the growing momentum of innovation ecosystems across Africa and the Middle East, with participants developing solutions addressing critical sectors from energy security to healthcare technology and financial services.