by Sanatkumar Phadte
Vedang Kamat from Saraswat High School has emerged as the Global Champion of the “AI Robo City Challenge” at Codeavour 5.0 International, held in Dubai on the 4th and 5th of May, 2024. He won the gold medal securing first place at Codeavour 5.0. His robot was the only one in the Junior category to complete all 11 tasks within five minutes. Two of these tasks required advanced machine learning, where blocks had to be scanned under a camera and correctly identified for their drop points.
Vedang secured the global championship with an impressive score of 340 points in the Junior category under the mentorship of Anay Kamat and Sanchita Nagvekar.
Previously, Vedang had demonstrated his prowess in competitive robotics by participating in the Bebras Challenge, where he earned the 21st rank across India. This achievement earned him recognition and felicitation from Chief Minister of Goa, Dr. Pramod Sawant. He later showcased his talent at the Goa International Robotics Festival 2024 during the Showtime event.
Vedang’s innovative spirit was also recognized at the Global Tech Summit Goa 2024, where his robot won the “Best Innovator of the Year” award at the Robot Showcase hosted by Team GoaTronics. His journey to the global stage began with a triumph at the Goa regionals of Codeavour 5.0 on March 10, 2024, securing 1st place. He then advanced to the nationals on April 6th, where he won second place, paving the way for his ultimate victory at the international level.
Vedang Kamat’s achievements reflect his exceptional skill, creativity, and dedication to the field of robotics, making him a shining example of the courage and innovation celebrated in such competitions.
The senior team consisted of Usha Matadin Kumawat of The Progress High School, Panaji mentored by teacher Maya Kamat who won the gold medal. Incidentally, Usha’s Journey to Dubai has been made possible by the crowdfunding campaign that raised over one lakh rupees to fund her journey to Dubai. The crowdfunding campaign saw many Goans come forward wholeheartedly to contribute. It is a dream come true for this class IX girl whose father is a tile fitter and mother a housewife to have crossed all the hurdles to win at the top most stage in robotics competing against multiple International teams to win the gold medal at the International AI And Robotics Competition Codeavour 5.0.
Maya Anay Kamat , mentor of Usha Kumawat , from The Progress High School Panaji, also won the special award “Champions Change Maker “ Award for the mentor of the year for the Codeavour 5.0 . This was a proud moment for all our fellow Goans as the teacher has excelled to make her student acheive her goals and reach the venue at Dubai by initiating the crowdfunding through social media awareness with the use of video appeal.
