Challenges & Competitions

Join the mission to grow more crop per drop 

Water scarcity is one of the greatest challenges of our time, affecting billions of people worldwide. The Water Challenge 2025 is an innovators, companies, startups, and researchers to develop transformative solutions that optimize water usage in agriculture while maintaining or enhancing productivity.
This challenge is part of the Mohamed bin Zayed Water Initiative (MBZWI), a global effort to drive technological breakthroughs and scalable innovations for a water-secure future.

A2RL is an all-new extreme racing series that is pushing the envelope of autonomous technology. Conceived by ASPIRE and brought together by the tireless efforts of engineers, scientists, and programmers, it is a STEM-fueled race and global autonomous showcase.

Each year, teams from educational and technological institutions from around the world compete to develop the fastest, most capable racing AI. The reward? A stake in a multi-million-dollar prize pool. The series aims to accelerate the development of advanced autonomous systems while inspiring the next generation of STEM leaders. A2RL is also playing a role in making Abu Dhabi a world-leading city for autonomous technology development and deployment.

In 2024, the MBZIRC Maritime Grand challenge brought together universities, research institutions and innovators from all over the world to find practical solutions to global maritime security challenges such as illegal fishing, piracy, smuggling, and human trafficking.

Stay tuned for details on the upcoming season of MBZIRC Grand challenge.

Feed the Next Billion

At ASPIRE, we are proud to partner with XPRIZE Feed the Next Billion – a $15M competition incentivizing teams to produce chicken and fish alternatives that replicate or outperform conventional protein in structure, versatility, sensory properties, and nutritional profile, while having a lower comparable environmental footprint.

The winning team – which will be announced in early 2024 – must develop multiple consistent cuts of raw chicken breast or fish fillet (weighing in at 115g or 4oz each). The competition is open to anyone, anywhere, including food scientists, technologists, and innovators.