Khalifa University to organize Mobile Application Competition 2012

Press release

Published April 24th, 2012 - 07:00 GMT

Al Bawaba

Khalifa University will organize the seventh annual Mobile Application Contest (MAC) in Abu Dhabi. University students from all over the UAE and the region can participate in the competition, which requires competitors to create innovative culturally focused applications that are designed to run on devices like smart phones and tablets.

This year’s competition is being organized by the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department of Khalifa University in partnership with Khalifa Fund and sponsored by Emirates Advanced Investments, the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority, Etisalat-BT Innovation Center (EBTIC) and the UAE Advanced Network for Research and Education (Ankabut).

MAC also offers students the opportunity to participate in special training courses on iOS/iPhone and Android. These training courses are offered to all the participants free of charge.

Dr. Arif Sultan Al Hammadi, Khalifa University’s Executive Vice President, commented on this year’s competition saying, “Khalifa University is proud to organize the seventh Mobile Application Competition. The last few years have seen the development of creative applications that, not only have been adopted by institutions, but marketed commercially.”

“Competitions like MAC demonstrate how far UAE students have come, and how the higher education sector in the UAE is evolving and growing.” Dr. Al Hammadi added. “This contest provides students with a supportive and nurturing environment to expand their knowledge and creativity and gain access to the latest scientific innovations and skills that will help them in their future careers and vicariously reflect positively on the economy of the UAE”

H.E. Abdullah Saeed Al Darmaki, CEO of the Khalifa Fund said “Khalifa Fund will continue to support all activities and events that help develop and promote the entrepreneurial spirit and culture of creativity among citizens.”

He stressed “This initiative posed by Khalifa University is a step towards stimulating the energy of the youth and encourages their creativity and hard work to formulate and develop creative ideas that reflect positively on the performance of the national economy in the United Arab Emirates.”

Al Darmaki also stated that “Khalifa Fund has a priority to support programs, plans and policies that develop the spirit of creativity and innovation among the citizens, and students form one of the most prominent segments of the community. Khalifa Fund will continue to focus on encouraging them to pursue entrepreneurship.”

The presentation and awards ceremony for MAC 2012 will be held on Sunday, May 6th, 2012.

Background Information

Khalifa University of Science, Technology and Research

The newly-established Khalifa University of Science and Technology (KU) combines the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology (MI), the Khalifa University of Science, Technology and Research (KUSTAR) and the Petroleum Institute (PI) into one world-class, research-intensive institution, seamlessly integrating research and education to produce world leaders and critical thinkers in applied science and engineering. Khalifa University endeavors to be a leader among research intensive universities of the 21st century, while catalyzing the growth of Abu Dhabi and the UAE’s rapidly developing knowledge economy.