The New Technology Experience

A HANDS-ON DIVE INTO INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES

The New Technology Experience (NTE), like the Robotics Challenge, is a fundamental component of FIRST Global’s annual program. It was established in 2021 as a means for the student community to stay current with cutting-edge technology. Each year, the FIRST Global Challenge is themed around solving one of the world’s greatest challenges. The NTE is integrated with and highlights new technologies related to this theme. It provides students with the opportunity to become experts in emerging fields, establishes stronger network connections among FIRST Global teams, and improves the participants’ competitiveness for college, internships, and employment.

The 2025 Eco Equilibrium New Technology Experience

In the Eco Equilibrium New Technology Experience, FIRST Global teams learn about the technologies that support biodiversity.

 

The world’s ecosystems are the lifeblood of our planet, sustaining millions of diverse species. There are many opportunities to protect the incredible variety of life that sustains us all with new technologies, specifically in the following categories:

    • Genetic diversity – the variety of genes within a given species
    • Species diversity – the number of different species within a specific region or area
    • Ecosystem diversity – the variety of ecosystems in a given region or area

 

Participating teams select one of these categories and then research and develop their own solutions, while highlighting how the application of these technologies can also mitigate climate change.

FIRST Global featured in CNN’s The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper — “How to Unscrew a Planet”

The segment highlighted FIRST Global teams participating in the 2022 New Technology Experience: Carbon Countermeasures.

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2024: Feeding the Future

The 2024 NTE Feeding the Future took FIRST Global teams beyond the game to learn about the technologies that support sustainable food systems. Students then created their own innovative solutions to benefit economic, social, and environmental sustainability.

2024 Innovator Award Winners

Gold: Spain for their project SUNHARVEST integrating agrivoltaics and water management for sustainable agriculture and energy production.

Silver: Ireland for replacing harmful chemical fertilizers with electro-farming.

Bronze: Islamic Republic of Iran for HydroFusion (an advanced integrated agricultural closed-loop system).

2023: Energy Evolution

The 2023 NTE — Energy Evolution — took FIRST Global teams beyond the Hydrogen Horizons game. Students learned about recent developments in clean energy and created their own innovative solutions to implement and improve access to sustainable energy within their communities and nations.

2023 Innovator Award Winners

Gold: Lebanon for a solar and hydroponics farm.

Silver: Republic of Moldova for a water cooling system to improve solar panel efficiency.

Bronze: Tunisia for converting seagrass into biogas.

2022: Carbon Countermeasures

The 2022 NTE — Carbon Countermeasures — took FIRST Global teams beyond the Carbon Capture game. Presented in partnership with XPRIZE, students learned about the impact of carbon dioxide on our environment, researched existing and developing technologies, and created their own solutions to combat climate change and ensure the safety of our planet through the future.

2022 XPRIZE Innovator Award Winners

Gold: Zimbabwe for making bioplastic from cassava starch.

Silver: Indonesia for enhanced vegetative propagation of a carbon-consuming endangered native tree.

Bronze: Greece for a more efficient way to heat and cool resort hotels.

2021: CubeSat Prototypes

The 2021 FIRST Global Challenge NTE engaged students with CubeSat prototypes. Teams were provided with educational resources and a physical kit of parts — including microcontrollers and environmental sensors — to fulfill a mission of local importance. Teams designed, built, programmed, and launched their prototypes into the lower layers of Earth’s atmosphere,

Recap Video