Egypt’s ministries of communications and information technology and finance are preparing to launch an artificial intelligence hackathon for startups, entrepreneurs and innovators.
The initiative will focus on developing AI solutions for government challenges, with the aim of improving public-sector services, operations and decision-making. Communications and Information Technology Minister Rafat Hendi announced the plan during the opening of Cairo ICT 2026.
Participants will work on challenges presented by government entities and submit technology-based solutions. The initiative could later expand to include other ministries, according to the announcement, creating more opportunities for startups to test products in real-world government settings.
The announcement did not provide a launch date, competition duration, participation requirements, prize details or a list of the challenges teams will address.
The hackathon forms part of Egypt’s National Strategy for Artificial Intelligence for 2025-2030. Alongside startup engagement, the government is seeking investment in AI data centers and expanding digital skills and reskilling programs. The communications minister said the electricity ministry could provide up to 1 gigawatt of capacity for targeted data center projects.
The government also highlighted the Arabic AI model Karnak, developed by the Applied Innovation Center, as part of efforts to build local capabilities and support Arabic-language applications.
Source: Jawlah
