Illinois AI Challenge

The future of AI in Illinois starts with today's students

Calling all problem solvers! The AI Illinois Challenge is a statewide competition for students in grades 6–12, designed to put your creativity, collaboration, and critical thinking to the test. Teams of up to four students, guided by a teacher sponsor, will take on one of two tracks to design AI-based solutions—or detailed proposals—that address real challenges in their communities.

We’re inviting you to harness the power of artificial intelligence to imagine new possibilities, solve authentic problems, and share your vision for how AI can make a positive impact on the world around you.

This challenge is your chance to:

Amplify your voice and showcase your ideas
Build future-ready skills like problem-solving, collaboration, and responsible AI use
Align your project with the new Presidential AI Challenge for an even bigger stage to shine

Whether you’re already an AI enthusiast or just curious to explore, this project-based competition is the perfect opportunity to turn ideas into action and demonstrate how Illinois students are leading the way in safe, ethical, and innovative AI.

Share your interest in participating now to get started →

The 2027 competition will open Fall 2026. Complete our interest survey to receive updates and resources about this year’s competition.

Share your Interest Challenge Overview 2027 Challenge Brief

Questions?

Contact our team for answers.

Matt Sherrill

Dr. Sarah Phelps, (618) 402-5475

Staff Directory

Choose your Track

Select a challenge track that align’s with your project vision

Students

Proposal

Teams create an in-depth proposal for how AI technologies could be applied to address a community challenge. This proposal must address an observed challenge in the student’s community, detail the mechanisms for applying AI technologies, and elaborate on how AI technologies could help address that challenge.

Students

Technical or Implementation

Teams build a solution with AI 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 AI technologies are helpful in addressing that challenge.

Teachers

Teach AI Concepts

Educators will create a video or other digital demonstration to share an innovative approach to teach an AI concept or tool to K-12 students.

Teachers

Transformative Teaching

Educators will create a video or digital demonstration to share how they create, modify or use an AI tool or technology that can assist in creating transformative teaching and learning experiences.

Contest Guidelines & Resources

Guidelines

Team Composition

Student: Grades 6–12; up to 4 students plus 1 adult coach.
Teacher: Individual teachers

Requirements

Pick a track
Submit one PDF (max 10 pages, ≤ 50 MB) that includes: a narrative (500+ words), pitch deck, originality statement, and a video link (≤ 5 min)
Use only free, school-provided, or LTC-provided tools

Scoring

Illinois will align scoring to the Presidential AI Challenge Rubric to simplify submission for the national challenge, with one exception:
Illinois scoring for Criteria 2 will be based on alignment to the UNESCO AI Guidelines for safe, responsible, and ethical AI use, rather than national objectives.
Teams that wish to submit to the national competition should also consider Criteria 2 from the Presidential AI Challenge.
Illinois school districts should ensure SOPPA compliance for any tools students use during project development.

Prizes

All participants receive:

Certificates of participation

The winning team receives*:

Feature on the LTC website and social media channels
Opportunity to publish a guest LTC blog post highlighting the winning AI design
More prize information coming soon

*Reminder: Illinois is not affiliated with the Presidential AI Challenge, so winning the Illinois AI Challenge does NOT equate to winning the state level for the Presidential AI Challenge

Resources

Illinois AI Challenge Toolkit:

LTC will provide a support toolkit to coaches upon registration, including:

AI Ethics & Safety toolkit aligned with the UNESCO AI Guidelines
Design Thinking Workbook
Editable Pitch Deck templates (Google Slides & Canva)
Email list for reminders and additional information
Student parental permission forms and media release forms

Timeline

Sept. 7, 2026 | Illinois AI Challenge Interest Form opens (Coaches indicate interest to participate)

Sept. 14, 2026 | Illinois AI Challenge Informational Webinar (see “Upcoming Events”)

Oct. 9, 2026 | Illinois AI Challenge Interest Form closes (5pm)

Oct. 19, 2026 | Finding the Real Problem: A Student & Educator’s Guide to Human-Centered AI (see “Upcoming Events”)

Oct. 26, 2026 | Building AI Literacy: Smart Prompting, Safe Data, and Better Results (see “Upcoming Events” )

Nov. 2, 2026 | The AI Toolbox: Creating, Designing, and Prototyping Your Challenge Project (see “Upcoming Events”)

Nov. 9, 2026 | Illinois AI Challenge Team Information Form Due

Nov. 9, 2026 | Closing the Loop: Human-Centered Feedback, Accessibility, and Final Polish (see “Upcoming Events”)

Nov. 30, 2026 | Illinois AI Challenge Office Hours (Join Here)

Dec. 7, 2026 | Illinois AI Challenge Office Hours (Join Here)

Dec. 14, 2026 | Illinois AI Challenge Office Hours (Join Here)

Dec. 18, 2026 | Illinois AI Challenge package due for state competition

Jan. 8, 2027 | Winners announced. Project scoring provided to participating teams