Outstanding results for Romania at the International Artificial Intelligence Olympiad (IAIO) – winter edition

Romania’s national team delivered exceptional performances at the International Artificial Intelligence Olympiad (IAIO) – Winter Edition, one of the world’s most prestigious competitions dedicated to artificial intelligence. The Olympiad is distinguished by its rigorous format and its strong emphasis on both the scientific foundations and ethical dimensions of AI. The competition combines advanced theoretical examinations with hands-on challenges focused on training AI models, assessing students’ conceptual understanding alongside their practical technical skills.

Internationally coordinated by Professor John Shawe-Taylor, UNESCO Chair in Artificial Intelligence, IAIO features problems inspired by real-world scenarios, including complex ethical dilemmas, and provides a highly demanding academic and scientific framework.

This year’s edition brought together 95 students from 25 countries. IAIO remains the only international Olympiad in artificial intelligence that systematically evaluates both theoretical knowledge and practical implementation skills in the field. The participation fees and travel expenses of the Romanian team were fully covered by the Nitro Association, one of the main organizers of the national selection process for this competition.

Romania’s Team Results

Silver Medal: David Tache (Andrei Șaguna National College, Brașov)

Bronze Medals: Alexandru-Dumitru Ardelean (Emanuil Gojdu National College, Bihor); Rareș-Ștefan Stanciu (International Computer Science High School of Constanța)

• 57th Place: Alexandru Lensu (Unirea National College, Vrancea)
• The medals were awarded by Tanja Fajon, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of Slovenia, alongside Professor John Shawe-Taylor and members of the competition’s leadership team, Monika Kropej and Davor Orlić.
• The students were accompanied by Carla Crivoi and Dr. Miruna Zăvelcă (Assistant Lecturer), both representing the University of Bucharest. Notably, Romania was the only delegation led by two women.

Romania’s success extended beyond student performance:

• Chris Luntraru, a PhD candidate at the National University of Science and Technology Politehnica Bucharest and a member of the IAIO International Technical Committee this year, was elected to the IAIO International Central Committee for a three-year term.
• Carla Crivoi was elected to the IAIO International Scientific Committee, also for a three-year term.

Diplomatic Counselor Romulus Banu attended the awards ceremony, congratulated the delegation, and conveyed the Romanian Embassy’s support for the next edition of the Olympiad, which will be held in Vietnam.

During their stay, the Romanian delegation was also invited to the Embassy of Romania in Slovenia, where they were congratulated by Ambassador Alexandru Grădinar and Romania’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Oana-Silvia Țoiu.

The results achieved at IAIO highlight both the strong interest and the high level of preparation among Romanian students in artificial intelligence, further strengthening Romania’s standing in international academic competitions in this field.

Preparations for next year’s edition are already underway. The ROAI local selection stage took place between January 31 and February 15, attracting 534 registered participants. The county-level stage will be organized in partner county centers, followed by the national stage at Genesis College Bucharest. After the national training camp, hosted by Tudor Vianu National College of Computer Science, Romania’s teams will be selected for both the next IAIO edition in Vietnam and the inaugural Central European Artificial Intelligence Olympiad, which will be hosted in Cluj-Napoca, Romania.