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Repton Abu Dhabi Champions Fifth Edition of Digital Summit

by Belinda Breeze

Repton Abu Dhabi, the Apple Distinguished School (ADS), hosted the fifth instalment of its Digital Summit in March 2023. 35 students from Years 6 to 8 across schools in the UAE used the applications of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to solve real-world issues including food wastage, educating refugee children, protecting endangered wildlife, virtual counselling to combat mental health issues, nutritional food identification, AI-assisted bikes for children of determination and using drones to rescue natural disasters survivors.

Students sharpened their digital skills by using Apple’s state-of-the-art office suite, iWork, as well as an impressive set of digital tools, including AR Makr, JigSpace, Swift, Garageband and Tayasui Sketches, to enhance their presentations and effectively deliver innovative solutions. Reptonians collaborated in groups on the use of drones and facial recognition cameras, using AI to track endangered species, and championed solving nutrition misinformation, enabling companies to generate accurate information about produce.


35 students from Years 6 to 8 across schools in the UAE, explored solutions using artificial intelligence to solve real-world problems


Steven Lupton, Principal of Repton Abu Dhabi, said, “As the first Apple Distinguished School in the region, one of our missions is to have a Digital Summit annually, even during Covid-19 where we hosted this virtually. We are excited to have students back on campus this year as they showcase their innovative ideas that could potentially change the world in which we live. We are delighted to open our doors to the young innovators of the future.”

Participating teams were evaluated on their presentations based on their unique solutions solving a specific real-world problem, market viability and innovation. The judging panel included Dr Jihan Zahran, Educational Specialist at Apple Middle East Data Systems (Apple MDS) as well as Peiman Kianmehr, Chair of the Department of Civil Engineering and Associate Professor of Civil Engineering, and Vinod Pangracious, Chair of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Associate Professor of Electrical Engineering from the American University of Dubai.


Students collaborated to plan, design and present AI-based solutions, including the applications of ChatGPT, drones, self-driving vehicles and more


The winning teams received an exclusive opportunity to collaborate with American University Dubai to further develop their creative solutions.

Winners Category List:

First place – AI Counselling to Combat Mental Health Issues – Repton Dubai

Second place – AI-Assisted Bike for Children of Determination – GEMs World Academy

“Our aim at Repton Abu Dhabi is to provide a world-class education that offers the best for every child. The school believes every student deserves the opportunity to grow and succeed in a safe, supportive and nurturing environment. Events such as the Digital Summit create the perfect opportunity for students to explore their creativity, critical thinking and problem-solving skills,” concluded Lupton.

For further information on Repton Abu Dhabi’s innovative teaching methodologies, please click the link below: