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Welcome to the 2026 IEEE SMC AI-Powered Collaborative Autonomy (AICA) Challenge. We are delighted to have you join us in this exciting opportunity to explore the challenges of collaborative autonomous systems and develop innovative solutions.

Overview

The IEEE SMC AICA Challenge 2026 is a competition focused on the development of innovative solutions for collaborative autonomous systems. In this first year of the competition, the scenario features a multimodal autonomous delivery system consisting of a QCar2 (ground vehicle) and a QDrone2 (aerial vehicle) in an urban environment. Participants will have an opportunity to design and implement delivery strategies, path planning, and control algorithms.

The competition is conducted in two stages:

Virtual Stage – Teams develop, implement, and test solutions in Quanser Interactive Lab (QLabs) simulation environment based on the provided virtual stage scenario, and submit a video link demonstrating strategy and mission execution. Teams may choose either Python or MATLAB/Simulink for development.
On-Site Finals – The top teams from the virtual stage will be invited to compete at the 2026 IEEE International Conference on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics (SMC 2026) (October 4–7, Bellevue, Washington). In this stage, teams will execute and demonstrate solutions based on the On-Site Finals scenario.

This competition invites students to push the boundaries of next-generation autonomous systems, tackle real-world challenges, and develop innovative AI-driven solutions. Participants will gain hands-on experience, industry recognition, and the opportunity to compete for a $2,000 first-place prize.

Content

Acknowledgment

This competition is organized as part of SMC 2026 and is designed jointly by Quanser and The University of Texas at Arlington (UTA). We sincerely thank the IEEE Systems, Man, and Cybernetics Society and Quanser for sponsoring this event.

Contact us

For any competition related inquiries, please email: smc.aica.2026@gmail.com