First Lady Melania Trump Announces “Presidential A.I. Challenge” With $10K Prize For Students
on Aug 27, 2025
Presidential A.I. Challenge Seeks Ideas To Better Communities
“America is in a race to achieve global dominance in artificial intelligence,” states the AI.gov website. “Winning this race will usher in a new era of human flourishing, economic competitiveness, and national security for the American people.”
Evoking the language of the space race during the Cold War, the Trump administration is seeking Americans who will carry out the three pillars of its A.I. Action Plan.
Those three pillars are:
- Accelerating innovation;
- Building A.I. infrastructure; and
- Leading in international diplomacy and security.
While the space race required the dreams and wonders of children, it was largely carried out by adults who kept that adventurous spirit alive.
Now, in the digital age, the torch is being passed to America’s youth.
“Take part in this nationwide initiative to discover, develop, and expand A.I.’s potential,” said First Lady Melania Trump in an August 26 video statement for educators and students from kindergarten to 12th grade.
This initiative is in keeping with President Donald Trump‘s April 23 executive order for Advancing Artificial Intelligence Education For American Youth.
Watch Melania’s introduction for the Presidential A.I. Challenge, here:
What Is The Presidential A.I. Challenge?
“The President’s National Artificial Intelligence Challenge invites every student in America — from kindergarten to 12th grade — to unleash their imagination and showcase the spirit of American innovation,” Melania said.
With the upcoming 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in mind, this national challenge tasks students, K-12, as well as educators to come together with community leaders to “solve real-world problems in their communities using AI-powered solutions with an opportunity to showcase their
solutions at a national level.”
Registration is presently open, with guidelines for the establishing of teams in elementary, middle, and high school, as well as educator teams, available online.
There are three projects tracks for teams to pursue, which are detailed as follows:
- Track I: Teams create an in-depth proposal for how A.I. technologies could be applied to address a community problem or challenge. This proposal must address an observed challenge in the student’s community, detail the mechanisms for applying A.I. technologies, and elaborate on how A.I. technologies could help address that challenge. Youth teams in Track I will prepare a presentation poster that details the proposed solution.
- Track II: Teams build a solution with A.I. technologies that can help address a community challenge. Solutions could take many forms, such as phone apps, websites, or processes, with supporting materials showing how people would leverage the technologies and how A.I. technologies are helpful in addressing that challenge. Youth teams in Track II will provide a demonstration or video of the technology solution.
- Track III: Teams will either a) teach an A.I. concept to their students in a new, unique way, or b) create a tool based on A.I. technologies to manage some aspect of their classrooms (teaching, communication, efficiency) that could not be completed without A.I.-based tools. Educators in Track III will prepare a video or other electronic demonstration of their teaching approach.
All teams will submit a written project summary that reflects on learning achievements, detailing research and lessons learned.
There will be a virtual and in-person training session on September 15, with recordings of all future training sessions being made available on the Presidential A.I. Challenge website.
The project submission deadline is January 20, 2026.
For more details, view the Presidential A.I. Challenge Guidebook For Participation.
Awards
While all compliant submissions in the Presidential A.I. Challenge will be recognized with a Presidential Certificate of Participation, there are significant prizes for teams who score as Regional Champions.
Regional Champions will, with determined eligibility, be “considered for an invitation to Washington, DC, for a three-day, in-person event, including a White House showcase of selected Regional Champions.”
The top prize is the National Champion title, which will see elementary school teams receive $10,000 for their school, homeschool, or community group.
In the middle and high school categories, each team member will receive $10,000.
Similarly, in the educator category, each educator on a team will receive $10,000.
For more information, visit www.ai.gov/initiatives/presidential-challenge.
