SPACE PRIZE CHALLENGE: kingdom of saudi arabia

Empowering young people to participate in the growing space economy.

 
 
 

Space Prize Launches First-Ever KSA Future Innovator Challenge, Advancing Vision

2030 Through Space Education and STEAM Leadership

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia — The Space Prize Foundation, a global non-profit dedicated to

advancing gender equity and youth participation in the space economy, announces the launch

of the Space Prize KSA Future Innovator Challenge, a first-of-its-kind national program

empowering students ages 12–18 to shape the technologies of tomorrow.

Anchored in the Kingdom’s rapidly advancing STEAM ecosystem and fully aligned with Vision

2030, the Challenge invites students from across Saudi Arabia to explore the future of space,

sustainability, and innovation through a multi-stage program that will include a flagship Riyadh

Space Camp and a final awards ceremony held during FII in October 2026.

Hands-On Space: Explore STEMAIVERSE Camps

Hands-On Space: Explore STEMAIVERSE Camps

Hands-On Space: Explore STEMAIVERSE Camps

Immersive, hands-on learning experiences in fields like AI, Robotics, and Space Exploration.

What is Space Prize Challenge Riyadh?

In its largest Challenge yet, the Space Prize Foundation will provide 80-100 high school age young adults a chance to participate in the Space Camp in Riyadh; in partnership with STEMAiVerse Camps. The program will take place over three days during the July, 2026.

This year's Challenge is structured around two progressive phases:

  1. Space Camp Selection: Schools will nominate up to 8 eligible students who will be invited to attend an intensive Space Camp by STEMAIVERSE in July 2026 in Riyadh.

  2. The Final Challenge: Following the camp, the top 20 participants will be selected to advance. They will then submit a compelling 90-second video that demonstrates their applied knowledge and proposed solution to the challenge topic (using the skills they acquired during the camp).

  3. Four winners (two female and two male) will be selected by the judges.

ALL spots for the The space prize SPACE CAMP are selected by the school.

Please contact liftoff@spaceprize.org if you are interesTed in a participating.

Timeline

  • Applications will open in March, 2026.

  • Open until May, 25th, 2026 .

  • Space Camp TBD: July, 2026

 judges and mentors coming soon

FAQ

Student applications:

  • Who is eligible to apply? The Space Prize Innovator Challenge in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is open to girls and boys aged 12–18 in Riyadh.

  • What is the student nomination process? Participating schools will nominate students who have expressed a keen interest in space and have engaged with key aspects of the Space Prize curriculum. Our program intends to provide these young people with unprecedented access to a diverse group of industry professionals and mentors. Our goal is to foster an inclusive environment that promotes diversity of thought and community, inspiring the next generation of leaders to shape the future of the global space industry.

Space Camp:

Round 1 - Mission: RedCode

Mission: RedCode is a premier, intensive STEM program designed to bridge the gap between classroom theory and the trillion-dollar global space economy. Over three days, 100 high-potential students (ages 12–18) engage in a high-stakes, mission-based challenge led by STEMAIVERSE and international experts in space and STEM.

What is STEMAIVERSE? STEMAIVERSE is our specialist delivery partner, recognized globally for creating high-tech, immersive STEM experiences. They will be managing the day-to-day operations of the camp.

STEMAIVERSE focuses on "bringing STEM to life" for the next generation. They act as a bridge between academic theory and real-world industry application. Their programs are specifically designed to be:

Immersive & Hands-On: They use emerging technologies (like AI, AR, and Meta Worlds) and "Project-Based Learning" (PBL) to engage students beyond traditional textbooks.

Expert-Led: Their curriculum is delivered by award-winning educators and industry professionals, ensuring students learn from people currently working in the field.

Round 2:

  • How are the winners of round 2 chosen?

    The second round of the challenge is a video contest. The Space Prize Foundation hosts a single video contest for the 20 finalists. Judges will score the videos based on a shared rubric and scoring guidelines. Each winner is invited to participate in a series of events in the space industry and is paired with a mentor for the following year.

Judging:

  • Who are the judges & mentors? Coming Soon

    • Role models can instill a sense of belonging and identity for people interested in STEM.

      THE IMPACT OF MENTORSHIP IS INVALUABLE

      Space Prize judges and mentors are influential women and men from across STEM-related fields, especially the space industry, including experts in astronautics, education, finance, marketing, philosophy, and more. They represent a wide variety of the rapidly growing number of careers available to young people today.

Overall Expectations of the School

  • Assign a facilitator with whom the Space Prize team  can correspond directly

  • Evaluate the Space Prize curriculum resources for clubs/independent learning

  • Promote the challenge to all students at the school aged 12-18. 

  • Decide on your own strategy for selecting students

  • Celebrate the winner, the twenty finalists, and all participants when winners are announced in September/October.

Role of The Facilitator

  • Coordinate with the school administration and faculty to promote the contest.

  • Meet with the Space Prize team to ensure rounds 1 & 2 run smoothly over the summer.

  • Plan celebrations for the winner, the four finalists, and all participants - plus the supporting faculty!

Will students have to miss school? No. The camp is planned for July 2026 during the summer vacation.

Winner announcement: 

  • When will the winners be announced? Winner will be announced after the video challenge at the end of September. Winners will be awarded prizes at a special ceremony at the end of October, 2026.

  • Will students have to miss school? No. The camp is planned for July 2026 during the summer vacation.

Additional information:

  • Where can I find more information about the competition? You can find more information about the competition on the competition website. You can also contact us by email at LiftOff@SpacePrize.org. We look forward to your participation!

TIMELINE:


Our educators

Dr. Maryam Sani

Executive director

Dr. Sani brings over 30 years of STEM expertise to the Space Prize Foundation. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry and an EdTech pioneer, she has a history of building bridges between the Middle East and global centers of excellence, including pioneering initiatives at MIT for Saudi female students and at the CubeSat Challenge in New York at the Intrepid Museum. A leading voice in women’s representation in STEM, having authored a PhD on female STEM career paths in KSA. Her work ensures that the Space Prize is not just a competition, but a world-class educational pipeline.

lead educator

Damien Aldridge

Damien Aldridge is an award-winning STEM educator, program designer, and founder of STEMAIVERSE and Space Quest LLC. His work focuses on preparing students for future careers in Space, AI, and emerging technologies through immersive learning experiences.

With more than 15 years of experience delivering STEM and Space programs across the United States, Middle East, Europe, and Asia, Damien designs large-scale initiatives that combine engineering, design thinking, artificial intelligence, and real-world problem solving. His programs connect students with universities, industry partners, and global peers, while building practical skills in collaboration, communication, and innovation.

Damien is the creator and lead educator behind programs including Occupy Mars, Mission: RedCode, and The New Earth Project. These initiatives challenge students to design solutions for life on Mars, sustainable cities, and future planetary systems using physical STEM tools alongside virtual and metaverse environments.

Feedback from our nyc cubesat challenge:

  • I thought it was good. On the website, it said that our satellites would be launched, though. It was a cool experience, and I'm glad that I attended.

  • My expectations were exceeded and my experience was great, learning about space and making a CubeSat was definitely something I’ll never forget and something that had a great impact on me

  • I’m not exactly sure what my expectations were before the camp, but I can definitely say whatever they were, they were met. The experience was amazing! I’m not necessarily into space, yet, communicating with different people from all types of backgrounds, getting insightful feedback from NASA astronauts and being in the position to build a cube-sat, which I have never done before, has definitely opened my eyes to a new world that I was definitely missing out on. I would say the experience has left me very interested to learn more about space and to introduce this program to my friends who may not have known too much about it before this workshop, like me.

  • Before the camp I was super nervous because I had limited knowledge on space exploration. However, during the experience, I got to meet a large group of girls like me interested in space exploration. I also got to receive feedback and advice from mentors who have the job I can dream of. It was a surreal experience. It made me feel more confident that being a woman in STEM was a possibility.

  • I think working with a group of people who had different ideas and different thoughts was the most valuable and useful aspect

  • I believe the speeches from the different astronauts were most useful for me because it gave a real first-hand perspective of what it’s like to be working with NASA and in the space world overall. It was very insightful!

What aspects of this course were most useful or valuable?

  • Being able to receive mentorship from astronauts was extremely valuable. Also, learning how to think like somebody in a space-related career was the most useful skill I learned.

I was expecting extreme difficulty and hard challenges but it was quite doable and really fun I enjoyed it a lot and it made me more interested and I would definitely do it again