The activities of the 2nd edition of the Oman AI-Enhanced Drone Competition concluded at the Grand Hall of the University Cultural Centre, under the patronage of His Excellency Eng. Said bin Hamoud Al-Maawali, Minister of Transport, Communications and Information Technology, in the presence of His Highness Sayyid Dr. Fahd bin Al Julanda Al Said, the Vice-Chancellor, along with a number of distinguished officials, academics, stakeholders, and interested parties. The competition commenced in June 2025 and continued until February 2026.
The closing events featured the final rounds of the competition, alongside an educational and entertainment exhibition with the participation of nine local companies specialising in drone technologies, AI, and 3D printing. The programme also included a drone photography exhibition for aerial photography enthusiasts, as well as an FPV pilots’ challenge showcase.
The closing ceremony comprised a variety of activities, including prize draws for drones, a short theatrical performance, and short films that combined drone cinematography with AI technologies, in addition to honouring the winners and sponsors.
The Oman AI-Enhanced Drone Competition programme comes as part of efforts to enhance public awareness of the applications and multiple benefits of drone technologies, empower Omani youth to contribute to the development of technological solutions, and support the establishment of a promising economic market and the creation of job opportunities in this field. The programme also contributed to qualifying participants both theoretically and practically in the construction, calibration, operation, and programming of drones, as well as in integrating AI technologies to enable autonomous flight, in addition to preparing them to participate in regional and international competitions.
The second edition of the programme targeted 120 competitors from more than 15 local and international universities, selected from among hundreds of applicants from various academic disciplines. The training programme was implemented in two phases: the first focused on the fundamentals of drones and remote control operation, while the second was dedicated to drone control using AI technologies. Upon completion of the training programme, outstanding participants qualified for the final rounds, which were held at the Grand Hall and comprised two tracks: the manual remote-control track and the AI-enhanced autonomous control track.
The first phase of the programme, implemented between June and September 2025, involved training participants in six cohorts, with 20 participants in each cohort, through an intensive programme exceeding 15 training hours per participant. This included theoretical and practical workshops covering an introduction to drones, their types and applications, the regulations governing their use, design and assembly mechanisms, safety requirements, and the development of piloting skills in virtual, laboratory, and open environments.
The second phase, implemented in December 2025, saw the selection of the top 40 participants to take part in advanced workshops in AI and computer vision systems, comprising 15 hours of intensive training. During this phase, virtual environments developed by the organising team were used to enable participants to develop and test autonomous flight algorithms prior to practical implementation.
In mid-January 2026, the intensive boot camps and final qualification stages commenced. In the remote-control track, 30 participants qualified for the first stage, narrowing down to 10 participants in the final stage, while in the AI-enhanced control track, 20 participants qualified initially, reaching 10 participants in the concluding stage.
Across its three editions, the programme has achieved positive impact indicators, including the establishment of start-up companies by a number of participants, the employment of others, and the engagement of some in the training sector within the fields of drones and AI. It is worth noting that the programme is implemented by the College of Engineering in partnership with the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology as part of the the National Initiative for Digital Competencies (Makeen), with technical support from the Civil Aviation Authority, and funding from Ithca Group, Sohar Port and Freezone, Petroleum Development Oman, and Ibn Firnas Company, in addition to creative sponsorship from Zamakan.