Sheik Hamdan bin Mohammed celebrated the winners of the world’s largest prompt engineering competition that drew more than 3,800 entries from 125 countries recently. The Global Prompt Engineering Championship took place during Dubai AI Week. Twenty-four finalists from 16 countries competed live in Dubai, which demonstrated the worldwide enthusiasm for artificial intelligence technologies.
Dubai’s Crown Prince, Sheik Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, awarded a prize pool of AED 1 million (USD 270,000) to champions in art, video, gaming, and coding categories. He also unveiled a bold plan to train one million people in AI prompt engineering within three years. This initiative reflects Dubai’s steadfast dedication to advancing AI expertise in the region. Major tech giants like Microsoft, Google, and IBM conducted workshops during the championship that reinforced Dubai’s emergence as a global AI hub.
Sheik Hamdan honors global AI talent at Dubai AI Week
Image Source: Economy Middle East
His Highness Sheik Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, led the awards ceremony of the Global Prompt Engineering Championship 2025 at AREA 2071 in Emirates Towers. The event stood out as a highlight during the first-ever Dubai AI Week, celebrating brilliant minds in the AI world.
The competition attracted an impressive 3,800 entries from 125 countries worldwide. The selection process brought 24 finalists from 16 nations to compete in Dubai. Participants showed their expertise in four creative categories: Art, Video, Gaming, and Coding.
The winners split an impressive AED 1 million prize pool and gained valuable exposure to industry leaders. UAE’s Abdulrahman Al Marzooqi took first place in Coding while pursuing his master’s degree in Machine Learning at Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence. Syrian filmmaker Ibrahim Hajjo won the Video category, and Microsoft’s Senior Cloud Solutions Architect Ibrahim Helmy from Canada claimed the Gaming category. Yahya Kaddoura, a Palestinian Architectural Designer and Associate Principal at Atkins, won the Art category.
The Dubai Center for Artificial Intelligence, an initiative of the Dubai Future Foundation, hosted this second edition of the championship with support from the Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy. The event became the life-blood of Dubai AI Week, which brought together people from over 100 nationalities and featured more than 180 speakers, 150 sessions and workshops, and 140 activities.
Sheik Hamdan highlighted prompt engineering as a vital skill in the AI era and reinforced Dubai’s vision to become a global hub for top talent in this field. The championship proved Dubai’s rapid progress in AI adoption and its growing status as a worldwide center for AI innovation.
Dubai accelerates AI leadership through prompt engineering
Image Source: The Gulf Time Newspaper
Sheik Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s “One Million Prompters” initiative serves as the life-blood of Dubai’s bold strategy to lead worldwide AI adoption and innovation. This groundbreaking project, the first and largest of its kind worldwide, will enable one million people to master AI prompt engineering skills within three years.
“This initiative opens new avenues for individuals from diverse disciplines to drive AI adoption across technical, creative, and knowledge-driven sectors,” said Saeed Al Falasi, Director of Dubai Center for Artificial Intelligence (DCAI). The program fits seamlessly with the “Dubai Universal Blueprint for AI,” a detailed framework that develops specialized talent and advances AI technologies in vital sectors.
The “One Million Prompters” initiative has four specialized modules:
- “Unleashing the Power of AI” – provides foundational knowledge on AI and generative AI
- “Commanding Conversations with AI Chatbots” – teaches advanced prompt engineering techniques
- “AI-Powered Productivity Revolution” – presents tools to optimize workflows
- “Creative Frontiers with Generative AI” – shows AI applications in creative fields
Participants earn accredited certificates that prove their expertise in AI prompt engineering after completing the program.
Sheik Hamdan’s strategic initiative builds on his launch of the Dubai Center for Artificial Intelligence at Emirates Towers in 2023. The Center helps government entities deploy future technologies. More than 1,000 government employees from over 30 entities have received training on generative AI applications.
These initiatives could significantly affect the economy. The generative AI sector should grow from AED 36.72 billion in 2022 to AED 406.85 billion by 2030, with a compound annual growth rate of 34.3%. Sheik Hamdan bin Mohammed has established Dubai as a global leader in AI education, innovation, and practical application through these forward-thinking programs.
Championship showcases real-world AI creativity
Image Source: Government of Dubai Media Office
The Global Prompt Engineering Championship 2025 showcased real-life AI applications through challenging tests that put participants under genuine pressure. Competitors faced four unique categories that needed specific outputs within tight deadlines.
Each category pushed participants to solve practical problems using AI in creative ways. The Art category challenged them to interpret “Time Travel in Two Frames” by creating paired images showing the same object or place in different time periods while keeping visual flow intact. For the Video category, participants created 15-20 second wildlife documentary clips that placed animals in unexpected yet believable settings – a perfect blend of reality and creative imagination.
The Gaming and Coding challenges stood out the most. Gaming participants created “One Minute Hero,” where players had just 60 seconds to save the world. Each gameplay adapted uniquely based on previous attempts. Ibrahim Helmy, a 28-year-old Canadian resident, caught the judges’ attention with “Jumeirah Runner,” a side-scrolling game featuring players avoiding obstacles on Dubai’s beach. He also created “The Karak Protocol,” where players learned to make perfect karak tea—a beloved part of Gulf food culture.
The coding finals saw participants building user-friendly AI emergency response assistants for Dubai that provided up-to-the-minute support during crisis situations. Abdul Rahman Almarzooqi, a 23-year-old Emirati student, showed amazing speed by creating fully working websites and applications in less than 30 minutes using tools like ChatGPT.
The championship drew worldwide attention, with entries coming from 132 countries making up 70% of submissions, while UAE contributed 30%. A panel of distinguished judges from government and private sectors assessed the submissions based on accuracy, quality, and creativity.
Hamdan bin Mohammed’s vision came to life as participants showed how AI prompt engineering creates practical solutions across entertainment, emergency services, art, and cultural experiences. Dubai proved itself as a nurturing ground for AI talent developing solutions with immediate real-life impact.
The Global Prompt Engineering Championship 2025 stands as a milestone in Dubai’s experience to become a worldwide AI powerhouse. Participants showed exceptional skills in art, video, gaming, and coding categories. These skills translate directly into ground applications. Sheik Hamdan’s personal involvement highlights the UAE‘s view of artificial intelligence as the life-blood of future economic development.
This championship, only in its second year, has drawn competitors from 125 countries who submitted over 3,800 entries. Such massive participation shows Dubai’s growing status as a hub for AI innovation and talent development. Winners from the UAE, Syria, Canada, and Palestine prove AI technologies’ universal appeal across borders.
“One Million Prompters” initiative emerges as the next step in Dubai’s complete AI strategy. This bold program will give state-of-the-art prompt engineering skills to a huge talent pool over three years. Dubai now positions itself as a creator of specialized AI professionals who can drive innovation in multiple sectors.
Sheik Hamdan’s vision matches economic forecasts for the generative AI sector. Experts predict growth from AED 36.72 billion to AED 406.85 billion by 2030. The Dubai Center for Artificial Intelligence and the Universal Blueprint for AI create a strong foundation for green practices.
Dubai’s investment in prompt engineering education and competitions will pay off as AI merges with daily business operations and creative processes. The city encourages technical expertise and creative AI applications. This approach sets an example for other regions looking to succeed in the fast-changing world of artificial intelligence.