Two Arab students seize the lead in an aviation artificial-intelligence competition at Technovate
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The competition began last February with a technical report submitted by a team of two students, earning seventh place in the semi-final round. That ranking was not the end of the road, but a launch point for intensive work that continued for months. In the final stage held in September, the team presented the same performance with improved algorithms and captured first place in the aviation artificial-intelligence competition at Turkey’s Technovate festival.
The two students are Abdullah Osama, an Egyptian studying mechatronics engineering at Yıldız Technical University in Istanbul, and Talal Bakour, a Syrian graduate in mathematical engineering. Their project relies on artificial-intelligence techniques to detect people and vehicles, locate drones when the Global Positioning System (GPS) signal is lost, and recognize objects in images. These capabilities, Osama explains, can be used in security and traffic-management contexts, gain particular value in environments where navigation signals are jammed or disrupted, and hold promising potential for defence industries.
Real-world Test Without a NetworkThe final conditions were tougher than the team had expected: participants were barred from using the internet and underwent four separate test sessions, each lasting about an hour. In this technical isolation, the algorithms demonstrated their ability to operate independently, a core requirement for smart aviation systems that cannot rely on constant cloud connectivity. Osama describes the moment the results were announced: “My teammate called me and told me we had won, then I verified it myself. Thank God, I felt great happiness, but what I felt even more than joy was relief, because we had worked hard in the last months and barely slept.”
From the Competition to a Career PathOsama’s ambition does not stop at the Technovate victory. He secured a training opportunity at the Turkish company Baykar, which specializes in developing unmanned aerial systems, and sees it as an important step toward building a career in the defence-industry sector. He says: “I want to work at Baykar and that is an important goal for me, I aspire to build a career in defence industries, gain experience, develop myself, and then work there in the future.” He adds that his hope goes beyond Turkey’s borders: “I want our project to benefit not only Turkey but all Islamic countries as well.”
Academic and Cultural IntegrationOsama’s study experience in Turkey reveals another facet of the success equation. He initially feared that Turkish would be a barrier, but he managed to learn it in a short period, and the cultural closeness between Turkey and Egypt helped his academic and social integration. This integration enabled him to work with an advanced research team and access training opportunities at leading companies such as Baykar, in an environment that supports turning student projects into publishable products.
Technovate, as Turkey’s largest aviation, space and technology festival, is organized in cooperation between the Turkish Technology Team Foundation “T3” and the Turkish Ministry of Industry and Technology, and aims to strengthen Turkey’s capabilities in advanced technology and encourage innovation and entrepreneurship. This year’s edition was held in Şanlıurfa province in southeastern Turkey from 30 September to 4 October. The Arab team’s victory at this international venue is not merely an academic achievement, but an indicator that Arab talent, when provided with a supportive environment and equal opportunities, can compete in the world’s most demanding technical tracks.
What this means for the young Arab engineer: the path from a university project to an international platform and then to training at a leading company is not a straight line, but it is possible when technical competence meets a determination to develop oneself, and when talent finds environments that embrace it rather than merely exploit it. The lesson here is not in the award, but in the fact that skills built in a university lab, tested under harsh conditions without internet, have become qualified for entry into real industrial supply chains. This is the signal worth following.