HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam., Oct. 06, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The National Pitching Day and Award Ceremony for the International Blockchain Olympiad 2021 (IBCOL 2021) – Vietnam National Selection Round (VN-BCOL) was held by YellowBlocks – the Head of the National Organizing Committee, and the co-organizers: Hub Global, National Startup Support Center (NSSC, under the Ministry of Science & Technology), Vietnam National Student Association Hanoi Chapter, Tech Founder Institute, RedFox Labs, and LaunchZone.
The Vietnam Selection Round for IBCOL 2021 was held for more than two months, acquiring more than 100 whitepaper submissions from Vietnamese undergraduate and postgraduate students across the country. Most submissions came from students from top-tier universities in Vietnam, such as VinUniversity and RMIT University.
At the National Pitch Day, the top three team contestants won prizes totaling $5,000, awarded by the Headline Sponsor RedFox Labs. The top six finalists have been revealed and given the opportunity to be the representatives of Vietnam to participate in the Final Global Round, held virtually on October 8-10, 2021, in Bangladesh.
The International Blockchain Olympiad (IBCOL) is an annual global competition that invites current and recent students to propose complete solutions for real-world problems with blockchain technology. The IBCOL 2021 theme revolves around the application of blockchain technology in seven areas: e-Government, FinTech, HealthTech, EduTech, Identity/Privacy, Supply Chain Provenance, and Document/Authentication.
This is the second time Vietnam has participated in the competition along with over 59 countries from the Americas, Asia-Pacific, Europe, Middle East, and Africa.
- The Champion: LifeLink with the project “A blockchain-based platform using Federated Learning to empower AI in medical research without centralizing and sharing patient data”.
- 1st Runner-up: Team KidKat – “Blockchain-based Children Trafficking Prevention System”.
- 2nd Runner-up: DLA Squad – “A Blockchain Application for Electric Vehicles Battery Leasing Service Management”.
- Merit Awards: The Blockers with the project “Certchain”; Trang Le with the project “Blockchain Technology In Healthcare”; and ViFaChain with the project “Vietnamese Food Export Traceability & Quality Management System”.
Sharing thoughts on the VN-BCOL 2021, the Champion “LifeLink” said: “Being selected to join the Global Final Round at IBCOL played a crucial step in making our idea in reality. Our idea was inspired while undergoing the Covid 19 pandemic. We realized that AI technology could be applied to speed up vaccine research, predict symptom severity, and save more lives. However, the application of AI raises concerns about the leakage of patient information, which is a huge barrier. Realizing the potential of AI in treating not only Covid-19 but also in other serious diseases such as cancer, chronic, we thought that ‘AI should be best utilized to save more lives. patient’, but at the same time, we need to respect the patient’s right to privacy.”
Ms. Kimiko Doan, the Founder of YellowBlocks and Head of the National Organizing Committee made her commentary: “In 2020, three Vietnamese Representatives joined the IBCOL and won the Award of Merit at the Global Final Round (HebiLife from RMIT University Vietnam). In 2021, Vietnam participated in the IBCOL for a second time. This year’s whitepapers are of great quality, showing the team-contestant’s academic knowledge and ability to utilize blockchain in practice. Following the National Pitching Day and Award Ceremony, we will move into the Mentoring Round where team contestants are given the opportunity to connect with and be mentored by leading blockchain experts. I believe that many young blockchain professionals from Vietnam will be nurtured thanks to IBCOL, helping promote the Vietnam blockchain ecosystem to the world.”
Furthermore, Mr. Ben Fairbank, the Founder of RedFOX Labs explained “RedFOX Labs is thrilled to be a part of the Blockchain Olympiad (VN-BCOL) and to work alongside our esteemed colleagues. The Vietnamese talent is something the whole country can be proud of, and we look forward to seeing Vietnam represented on the world stage. RedFOX Labs launches companies in the fastest growing sectors of the internet economy, so we are well versed in what a company must overcome to go to market and be successful. We take great pride in helping to unearth the next big companies out of Vietnam and are honoured to be a part of this event.”
According to the Head of the National Organizing Committee for VN-BCOL, YellowBlocks, The Global Final Round of IBCOL 2021 will be held online from October 8-10, 2021. For further information, please visit: https://www.ibcol.org
The Closing Ceremony and Awards Ceremony were livestreamed and got 1,200 views on Facebook’s “Vietnam Blockchain Olympiad.” The livestream welcomed the participation of Mr. Le Toan Thang, a representative from the National Startup Support Center (under the Ministry of Science & Technology). Other participants included representatives from the Board of Partners of RedFox Labs, LaunchZone, Tech Founder Institute, Hanoi Student Union, RMIT University Vietnam, VinUniversity University, Vietnam Blockchain Corporation, ABCD Tech Vietnam, Vietnam Blockchain Innovation, Barefoot Ventures…
About IBCOL 2021
The International Blockchain Olympiad (IBCOL) is an annual global competition that invites current and recent students to propose complete solutions for real-world problems with blockchain technology.
More on the Vietnam Selection Round (VN-BCOL): https://yellowblocks.org/ibcol2021
More on the International Blockchain Olympiad (IBCOL): https://www.ibcol.org/
About YellowBlocks
YellowBlocks is the trusted Vietnam tech gateway to provide local insights, premiere networks, and business / marketing / tech strategies for leading companies in emerging tech (ABCD – AI/ML/Robotics, Blockchain, Cloud, Data).
Website: https://yellowblocks.org
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