Karaganda schoolchildren won the international robotics competitions in Abu Dhabi

Students of the Karaganda specialized boarding school of Information Technology returned with a winning cup from Abu Dhabi (UAE). Their robot show on the theme of ecology, based on the cartoon "How to Train your Dragon", impressed the jury of the international RoboCup 2025 Asia-Pacific competitions.

The large-scale tournament brought together more than 700 participants from 22 countries. Kazakhstan was represented by the Inspiro team from Karaganda.

The competition was held in one of the leading innovation centers of the UAE. RoboCup is considered one of the world's key platforms for developing machine learning, computer vision, and robotics technologies in general. This year, the program included eight leagues and fifteen disciplines, from rescue robots to football and the OnStage creative direction.

It was in OnStage that the Karaganda team of the Seifullina sisters, Yasmin and Eileen, Maxim Bormin, performed under the guidance of mentor Kairat Ismailov. In this category, it was necessary to put on a real robotic show – with an idea, choreography, technique and effects. Later, the teams joined the international SuperTeam: in a day it was necessary to prepare a new performance in the format of a hackathon. Kazakhstanis got into the same group with Hungary and Russia and showed themselves confidently – well-coordinated work and quick decisions brought them the first place.

In the overall SuperTeam program, the Inspiro team presented two key technical developments: an animatronic robot and an augmented reality (AR) system. The joint presentation was devoted to the topic of ecology and demonstrated the role of robots in protecting the environment.

For the captain of the eleventh-grade team, Yasmin Seifullina, this is the third participation in RoboCup. Before that, she performed in France and the Netherlands.

– As a child, I was interested in art, and during my studies at school I actively engaged in robotics. Competitions help you to reveal yourself. The peculiarity of our chosen category is that both the technical part and the visual part are important here," says Yasmin.

Maxim Bormin participated in RoboCup for the first time. According to the student, he got a very valuable experience.

– Previously, I only watched RoboCup videos, but here I found myself among strong teams from all over the world. Complex projects, huge work speed. I learned a lot, especially when we were collecting supertime: we need to negotiate, look for solutions, and help each other," Maxim shared.

The Information Technology Boarding School regularly participates in international competitions.

In November, another team will travel to Rome for the Fibonacci International Robot Olympiad.