The Technology Express Innovation Hackathon 2025: Banking Beyond Track Winners Announced
The UAE continues to stand at the intersection of innovation and ambition, rapidly evolving into a global technology and digital transformation hub. As government-led initiatives and private partnerships fuel exponential growth in sectors such as artificial intelligence, financial technology, logistics, and smart infrastructure, the next generation of young innovators are emerging as the true architects of this transformation, designing the ideas and solutions shaping tomorrow’s tech-driven world.
Against this dynamic backdrop, The Technology Express Innovation Hackathon 2025, powered by iFund Factoring, in collaboration with the UAE Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy & Remote Work Applications Office and hosted by Zayed University, marked one of the UAE’s most impactful youth innovation events of the year. With the support of institutional partners such as Dubai AI Campus, DMCC AI Centre, Dubai Police Academy, NextGen Center, and the College of Technological Innovation, the three-day hackathon brought together over 500 students from 25 universities across the UAE. Participants engaged in more than 30 hours of non-stop innovation, mentorship, and collaboration across 10 specialized challenge tracks designed to address the UAE’s future-focused priorities in technology and sustainability.
Among the most competitive categories at this year’s edition was the Banking Beyond track, which explored breakthrough innovation in financial technology and the evolution of the customer banking experience. Participants were tasked with reimagining the future of financial systems, exploring how digital transformation, open banking, and emerging technologies can redefine access, trust, and inclusion in the financial sector. Out of multiple submissions evaluated by a jury panel of 15 experts, the team Matcha Lovers from Murdoch University Dubai was awarded the top prize for their excellence in innovation, teamwork, and presentation. The panel deliberated carefully over a highly competitive pool of entries before naming the winners, recognizing their strong alignment with the track’s focus on building smarter, customer-centric banking models for the digital era.
The Innovation Hackathon 2025 reaffirmed The Technology Express’s mission to empower young creators, bridge academic excellence with industry innovation, and contribute to positioning the UAE as a model ecosystem for technology-driven progress. Ten winning teams across separate tracks were celebrated during the final day’s closing ceremony at Zayed University Dubai Campus, symbolizing the strength of the country’s innovation pipeline and its commitment to nurturing youth-led transformation for a digital future.
