Melania Trump Awards Student Winners of First Presidential AI Challenge at White House Ceremony
Mrs. Trump recognized national champions from the first Presidential Artificial Intelligence Challenge at the White House on June 9, 2026. The program drew more than 20,000 participants from all 50 states and additional U.S. jurisdictions.
Washington ExaminerFirst Lady Melania Trump presented awards to six student National Champion teams at the White House on June 9, 2026, during the first Presidential Artificial Intelligence Challenge National Champion Awards Ceremony. Mrs. Trump said the event marked an occasion for opening doors.
“When new doors open, passions flow, courage blossoms, and dreams are realized. AI inspires,” she stated. The First Lady noted the program’s reach, which engaged more than 20,000 students from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and 49 Department of Defense Education Activity schools across 10 countries.
She praised participants for applying artificial intelligence to practical problems and said their work addressed sectors including healthcare, nutrition, and public safety. Mrs. Trump thanked Secretaries Wright and Rollins for attending and for supporting the program.
She also recognized students, educators, parents, and administrators who took part in the contest. The six winning teams and projects were: Elementary Track 1: Homework Helper from Alcoa Intermediate School in Alcoa, Tennessee, with team members Aaron Gallagher, Ayden Taverna, Emma Connor, and Ryker Cochran.
Elementary Track 2: Friendzone Chatbot Bullying Prevention App from a community group in Aldie, Virginia, with team members Riva Madda, Aarna Jaiswal, Eshani Khatri, Sanuli Rathnayake, and Samitha Pinnamareddy.
Middle School Track 1: SkillUp from NorthStar Middle School in Sammamish, Washington, with team members Viha Iyer, Arya Pratap, and Shrimayi Shetty. Middle School Track 2: Using AI Models to Detect Urban Blight using Street-view Images from Julia Landon College Preparatory School in Jacksonville, Florida, with team member Shan Vance.
High School Track 1: Utilizing Computer Vision for Hotel Room Identification in Criminal Investigations from Upper Darby Senior High School in Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania, with team member Khandakar Mahin.
High School Track 2: IRIS: A Low-Cost Spatiotemporal AI Framework for Visually Impaired Navigation in Complex Urban Environments from North Allegheny High School in Sewickley, Pennsylvania, with team member Alexander Du. Mrs. Trump said participants had seen AI’s potential and created ideas that will shape America’s future.
She encouraged them to continue building boldly and to help maintain the country’s position in technology. She welcomed Director Kratsios to speak at the ceremony, citing his work supporting technology education for American children.
