LIT Thurles team take games prize at Imagine Cup

Building 3, Microsoft.
Photo: Wiki Commons

At lunchtime in Microsoft’s Sandyford offices in Dublin this Tuesday teams of young people gathered in corners, and around half eaten sandwiches, to talk in hushed tones. This was their last chance to prepare before the judging started.

The Imagine Cup is Microsoft’s annual competition for software innovation by students from across the Island. I had come for the games but stayed for some of the extraordinary apps on offer.

After a morning spent casually talking about their ideas in the brightly lit presentation room at the rear of Microsoft’s Building 3, the reality of the situation had set in. They were here from colleges across the country to pitch their ideas to a panel of judges from academia and industry.

These were the people who could take their ideas from a pastime to a product that they could sell. This is a high-stakes competition, and despite the shy smiles you could tell the pressure was on.

Stephen Howell (@saorog) is Academic Engagement Manager at Microsoft. He organised this year’s competition and he agrees that the set up is an intimidation one - “This is the only way to really put them on the spot.” he said as he showed me into the judging rooms.

Microsoft Imagine Cup judging in Dublin today

The Imagine Cup is Microsoft's annual innovation competition. And today is D-day for the teams involved.

Each of the teams has been busy developing their ideas - an innovative piece of software running on Microsoft's platrorms and today they need to pitch their work to real judges from industry.

Submissions closed in early February and today the top teams in Microsoft's three categories - Games, Innovation and World Citizenship - will compete.

I'll be going along to see what Ireland's young tech creatives are working on.