ATLAB Middle East, a subsidiary of Centena Group and the official organiser of FIRST LEGO League UAE, has announced the winners of the 2025 to 2026 season during a grand finale held on 7 and 8 February 2026 at the American School of Creative Science.
Organised by ATLAB Middle East, affiliate partner for FIRST and LEGO Education, the event brought together young innovators from across the United Arab Emirates to demonstrate their skills in robotics, artificial intelligence, STEM learning, and problem solving.
Strong National Participation Highlights Growing STEM Interest
Participants across the EXPLORE and CHALLENGE categories demonstrated creativity, teamwork, and innovation through robotics challenges and research projects. The competition drew participation from 391 teams nationwide.
Nilesh Korgaonkar, CEO of ATLAB, stated:
“We extend our heartfelt congratulations to all teams who reached the Finals of the FIRST® LEGO® League UAE 2025–26 season. The FIRST® LEGO® League UAE continues to be a powerful platform for inspiring young minds across the country. These students are not only building robots but addressing real-world challenges with creativity, collaboration, and purpose. Their work strongly aligns with the UAE Centennial 2071 and the National Strategy for Artificial Intelligence 2031, reinforcing our commitment to developing a future-ready workforce. We wish the teams every success as they go on to represent the UAE internationally, proudly showcasing the nation’s spirit of innovation, excellence, and global leadership”
Explore Category Showcases Creativity And Early Innovation
The FIRST LEGO League EXPLORE category included 202 teams, with 42 teams progressing to the Finals. All EXPLORE finalists were recognised across six award categories, with Team Robo Relics selected to represent FIRST LEGO League UAE EXPLORE at the World Festival in the United States. Special awards presented in this category included the Challenge Solution Award, Coding Award, Core Values Award, Team Poster Award, Team Model Award, and Rising Star Award.
Challenge Category Teams Achieve International Recognition
In the FIRST LEGO League CHALLENGE category, 189 teams competed, with 38 advancing to the Finals. A total of 19 awards were presented, with seven teams qualifying to represent the UAE at international competitions.
Team ACE was crowned Champion of the category, while Team Metalmech was named runner up, with both teams set to compete in the United States against teams from 114 countries. Team RoboRelix and Team Eviebots will represent the UAE in Australia, Team Lithomex will compete in Greece, Team Dew of the Void in Korea, and Team Chrono Diggers in Mexico.
UNEARTHED Theme Connects Technology With Heritage
The season’s theme, UNEARTHED, highlighted the creativity, teamwork, and technical excellence of participating students. Inspired by archaeology, the theme encouraged teams to explore how modern technologies such as robotics and artificial intelligence can support the discovery, study, and preservation of historical artefacts.
Teams presented innovative solutions combining robotics, artificial intelligence, and heritage preservation. Projects included drone based scanning to map excavation sites, ground penetrating radar to safely locate buried artefacts, autonomous rovers for hazardous environments, and artificial intelligence applications capable of identifying archaeological artefacts through image recognition.
Additional Honours Recognise Design, Performance And Collaboration
Additional honours in the CHALLENGE category included the Robot Design Award, presented to Team Lithomex with Team Uncharted as runner up. The Robot Game Award was claimed by Team Robo Relics, followed by Team ACE as runner up and Team Metalmech as second runner up. The Innovation Project Award and Core Values Award were presented to Team Eviebots and Team Dew of the Void respectively, with runner up teams also recognised.
Abdallah Alsafadi, Coach of Team ACE and representative of the Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation for Medical and Educational Sciences, said:
“This season of FIRST® LEGO® League was about far more than building a robot or competing. It gave students the space to think, experiment, fail, and grow together. We witnessed clear growth in their confidence, communication, and sense of responsibility. At the Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation for Medical and Educational Sciences, we believe such experiences shape how young people see their future. While we are delighted at the championship victory, the students’ personal growth is the true achievement.”
Judging Highlights Collaboration And Innovation Values
Teams were evaluated by a panel of judges from universities, schools, and public and private institutions across the UAE. Judging criteria included innovation, robot design and performance, teamwork, and core values, with strong emphasis on Gracious Professionalism and Coopertition to encourage collaboration, respect, and shared learning. The successful conclusion of the FIRST LEGO League UAE 2025 to 2026 season reinforces ATLAB’s commitment to nurturing young talent and supporting the UAE’s growing ecosystem for robotics and STEM education.
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