After weeks of developing an AI solution to keep birds safe in wind farms, five student teams have qualified for the AI Cup finals. The winner will be announced on April 14 during the Dutch AI Congress in Utrecht. The AI Cup 2026, an initiative of Team Epoch at TU Delft in collaboration with the AI Coalition for the Netherlands (AIC4NL), is the largest AI student competition ever held in the Netherlands, with 89 teams and 300 students.
The challenge
Millions of migratory birds fly through the same airspace every year where we generate wind energy. This creates a conflict between sustainability and biodiversity. The teams developed an AI system that predicts when and where birds will fly, allowing wind turbines to be adjusted at the right moment without disrupting energy generation. To do this, they were given access to radar data from TNO, which plans to discuss the practical application of their models with the winning teams.
The nominated teams
The five finalists competing for the AI Cup are Stochastic Gulls Descent, Geto-Dacians, DETERMINED, Echo, and TeamGazo.
The jury, consisting of Joep Breuer (TNO), Andy Lurling (LUMO Labs VC), and Geert-Jan Houben (TU Delft), announced the nominations during AI Futures Day on March 28 at De Doelen in Rotterdam: “We were pleasantly surprised by the high quality of the entries. All teams receive two scores: one for the technical performance of their model, and one for its practical feasibility. The five teams with the highest average scores have advanced to the finals.”
Final on April 14 during the Dutch AI Congress
On April 14, the five teams will present their solutions to a jury during the Dutch AI Congress at DeFabrique in Utrecht. The final round will take place as a breakout session within the AIC4NL conference program. The winner will then be announced on the main stage.
“It makes me proud that so many of the Netherlands’ future AI talents are working on a challenge where the economy and environmental stewardship go hand in hand,” says Willem Jonker, chairman of the board at AIC4NL.
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