Tamkeen 5.0 equips young Emiratis with AI skills for the future

Aligned with the UAE’s strategic direction in Agentic AI, the Abu Dhabi Youth Council concluded Tamkeen 5.0 with the Agentic AI for the UAE Hackathon, organised in collaboration with EDGE Group.

The event marked the culmination of a six-month pilot phase that was launched during GITEX 2025 at the Abu Dhabi Government Pavilion.

Since its launch, Tamkeen 5.0’s intelligent digital enrollment ecosystem has successfully engaged more than 700 Emirati youth, assessing their AI knowledge levels and connecting them with tailored learning pathways aligned with their skills and development needs.

The platform provides access to a training library comprising more than 35 specialised programmes delivered in collaboration with 16 government entities, private sector organisations, and academic institutions.

The hackathon served as the programme’s final stage, bringing together more than 130 young Emiratis to evaluate the effectiveness of the ecosystem in transforming acquired knowledge and skills into practical applications and innovative agentic AI solutions addressing real-world national priorities.

The event resulted in the development of 17 practical AI solutions across the programme’s four levels, demonstrating participants’ ability to transform learning into scalable and implementable solutions. These outcomes further validated the effectiveness of the digital enrollment ecosystem in guiding participants toward training pathways aligned with their capabilities and knowledge levels.

Among the key outcomes was the creation of professional development and employment opportunities for a number of participants in collaboration with EDGE Group and Mawaheb Talent Hub.

Mawaheb played a significant role in enhancing the programme’s practical impact by connecting participants with specialised career and training opportunities in artificial intelligence and advanced technologies, supporting the transition from skills acquisition to professional empowerment. These efforts align with the centre’s mission to strengthen collaboration between Emirati talent and leading organisations while creating sustainable pathways for career development and future-ready workforce preparation.

At the Exploration Level, which focuses on understanding the concepts, roles, and applications of agentic AI, the Ministry of Interior is exploring the potential adoption of the winning proposal within its digital services ecosystem. The proposed solution utilises intelligent agents to identify early indicators of extremist behaviour among youth and support appropriate preventive interventions.

At the Professional Level, which focuses on designing agentic AI-powered solutions, telecommunications company du has requested a follow-up meeting with the team behind the winning project, Rahhal, to explore collaboration opportunities and assess the potential of further developing the solution to deliver more integrated and personalised digital experiences for users.

At the Advanced Level, which focuses on developing functional agentic AI prototypes, Inception, a G42 company, has begun coordinating with the winning team to evaluate the proposed solution, assess its technical feasibility, and explore future development opportunities. The project introduced an AI agent prototype designed to automate refund request processing, detect potentially fraudulent claims, and enhance the efficiency and reliability of financial operations

At the Strategic Excellence Level, which focuses on leveraging AI to drive institutional transformation and shape future policies, the winning project, University of the Future, attracted interest from the Government Accelerators team to explore the project’s vision and its potential contribution to future policy and initiative development.

The hackathon also featured a distinguished panel of judges and experts representing Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence, G42, EDGE Group, du, the Technology Innovation Institute, the Ministry of Interior, and Khalifa University.

The programme results demonstrated high levels of participant satisfaction and engagement. A total of 86 per cent of participants described Tamkeen 5.0 as an ‘excellent initiative’, while 95 per cent confirmed that the training programs were aligned with their knowledge levels, and 95 per cent highlighted the clarity and ease of understanding of the content.

In addition, 80 per cent reported being able to apply what they had learned in practical settings. The findings also reflected participants’ readiness to move from learning to innovation and implementation, with 95 per cent expressing their willingness to participate in applied hackathons and 92 per cent indicating that they had the confidence to present their ideas and solutions to leaders, experts, and decision-makers.

The successful conclusion of Tamkeen 5.0 reflects the effectiveness of an intelligent model that integrates skills assessment, personalised learning pathways, and hands-on application, strengthening the readiness of Emirati youth to contribute to shaping the future of artificial intelligence in the UAE.