Five finalist teams. Clockwise from top left: Eco Red, Gota, Interaction in Movement, Fly Tech, e-Cipo.
17 November 2006
FINALISTS ANNOUNCED IN 50X15 'CONNECTING THE WORLD' DESIGN CONTEST
São Paulo (Brazil) - Students in Latin America have come one step closer to helping AMD connect the world.
For the past year, more than 30 student teams from colleges and universities in Argentina, Brazil and Chile have been working to develop innovative systems for enabling greater Internet connectivity throughout Latin America.
The AMD Connecting the World Design Contest, a part of AMD’s 50x15 Initiative, narrowed the field to five finalists in an announcement on October 13.
Among the finalists, four projects (“Fly Tech,” “Gota,” “Eco Red,” and “Interaction in Movement”) came from teams at Chilean universities while the fifth (“El Cipo”) came from a Brazilian university’s team.
AMD’s 50x15 Initiative aims to connect half of the world’s population to the Internet by 2015, while research indicates that only 16.7% are currently equipped with Internet access. The Initiative is part of AMD’s effort to advance global socioeconomic development in communities all over the world, region by region, by providing viable technology solutions.
As part of the Initiative, the Connecting the World Design Contest challenged students to develop creative solutions for Internet access devices based on AMD processing technology. The student teams, each assembled by a professor at their school, submitted extensive proposals for providing accessible technology to populations in regions currently without Internet access.
Connecting the World offers a unique, creative opportunity for students, allowing them to play vital roles in helping further a world-changing initiative. It demands that students venture beyond their ordinary realms of thinking to produce technology solutions for communities throughout Latin America. In addition to promoting socioeconomic development through digital inclusion, the contest provides an extraordinary chance for all involved to help solve problems of global importance at the local level.
In their proposals, each student team was required to include a description of the product, strategies for its successful implementation, and a business plan outlining the project’s technological and commercial feasibility. Each proposal was also designed to be compatible with the social and economic realities of its target market.
The five finalists for the Connecting the World Design Contest have one month from the date of their selection to develop a non-working prototype of their projects. All five will move forward with AMD’s financial support to work on manufacturing their products and projects.
The winners of the design contest will be selected by a panel of judges comprised of Hector Ruiz, AMD President and CEO; Billy Edwards, AMD Senior Vice-President and Innovation Director; Gustavo Arenas, AMD Corporate Vice-President for Sales and Marketing; Rob Enderle, Chief Analyst of Enderle Group; Judith Várhelyi, Hungarian Design Council Director; and Guilhermo Winnicki, Buenos Aires City Hall Metropolitan Center Manager for the Interactive Design brand.
The panel will award two winning teams a cash prize of $30,000, and a third will receive an honorable mention. Of the two cash prizes, $10,000 will go directly to each winning team’s school.
The winner of the Chairman’s Award will be selected exclusively by Ruiz, while the Judges’ Award will be selected by the entire panel.
AMD will announce the Connecting the World Design Contest winners during an award ceremony to be held in December in São Paulo, Brazil.
For more information visit the Connecting the World Website.
For the past year, more than 30 student teams from colleges and universities in Argentina, Brazil and Chile have been working to develop innovative systems for enabling greater Internet connectivity throughout Latin America.
The AMD Connecting the World Design Contest, a part of AMD’s 50x15 Initiative, narrowed the field to five finalists in an announcement on October 13.
Among the finalists, four projects (“Fly Tech,” “Gota,” “Eco Red,” and “Interaction in Movement”) came from teams at Chilean universities while the fifth (“El Cipo”) came from a Brazilian university’s team.
AMD’s 50x15 Initiative aims to connect half of the world’s population to the Internet by 2015, while research indicates that only 16.7% are currently equipped with Internet access. The Initiative is part of AMD’s effort to advance global socioeconomic development in communities all over the world, region by region, by providing viable technology solutions.
As part of the Initiative, the Connecting the World Design Contest challenged students to develop creative solutions for Internet access devices based on AMD processing technology. The student teams, each assembled by a professor at their school, submitted extensive proposals for providing accessible technology to populations in regions currently without Internet access.
Connecting the World offers a unique, creative opportunity for students, allowing them to play vital roles in helping further a world-changing initiative. It demands that students venture beyond their ordinary realms of thinking to produce technology solutions for communities throughout Latin America. In addition to promoting socioeconomic development through digital inclusion, the contest provides an extraordinary chance for all involved to help solve problems of global importance at the local level.
In their proposals, each student team was required to include a description of the product, strategies for its successful implementation, and a business plan outlining the project’s technological and commercial feasibility. Each proposal was also designed to be compatible with the social and economic realities of its target market.
The five finalists for the Connecting the World Design Contest have one month from the date of their selection to develop a non-working prototype of their projects. All five will move forward with AMD’s financial support to work on manufacturing their products and projects.
The winners of the design contest will be selected by a panel of judges comprised of Hector Ruiz, AMD President and CEO; Billy Edwards, AMD Senior Vice-President and Innovation Director; Gustavo Arenas, AMD Corporate Vice-President for Sales and Marketing; Rob Enderle, Chief Analyst of Enderle Group; Judith Várhelyi, Hungarian Design Council Director; and Guilhermo Winnicki, Buenos Aires City Hall Metropolitan Center Manager for the Interactive Design brand.
The panel will award two winning teams a cash prize of $30,000, and a third will receive an honorable mention. Of the two cash prizes, $10,000 will go directly to each winning team’s school.
The winner of the Chairman’s Award will be selected exclusively by Ruiz, while the Judges’ Award will be selected by the entire panel.
AMD will announce the Connecting the World Design Contest winners during an award ceremony to be held in December in São Paulo, Brazil.
For more information visit the Connecting the World Website.
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