The Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) concluded its Smart City Solutions Startup Competition 2025, organized in cooperation with the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB) in Indonesia. The event witnessed the participation of 194 young entrepreneurs as part of ICESCO’s program to train youth in creating and developing small-scale projects in technology and innovation. The initiative aims to support 150 startups across ICESCO Member States in this field.

During the closing ceremony, held in person and via video conferencing in Bandung, Indonesia, on Friday, 16 May 2025, the 13 selected participating teams presented their projects to the judging panel in the fields of sustainable innovation, smart cities, and the circular economy. The Committee concluded the event by announcing the three winning teams of the competition.

The first-place winner was the Curaweda team, which presented a digital storytelling platform using AI to support tourism in Indonesia. Second place went to the Encoteki team for their platform that offers discounts at retail stores through tokens shaped like endangered Indonesian animals, aiming to raise awareness about biodiversity. Third place was secured by the Nyampih Indonesia team for their project that creates a digital network connecting households, businesses, and waste collectors to streamline waste recycling management and advance the circular economy. In addition, several other projects received honorary awards, including Moo Apps and Kilatsoon.

The event, attended by Dr. Mohammad Sharif, Advisor in the Science and Environment Sector at ICESCO, featured a series of capacity-building workshops for startups on applications of AI and modern technologies.