Rome Cup 2026
Rome, 28th April 2026 – Over 4000 students took part in the 19th edition of the Rome Cup 2026 entitled “What’s Next? – Intelligence and talent in dialogue, converging technologies and shared governance” was held in Rome from 28-30 April and organized by Fondazione Mondo Digitale in collaboration with the University of Rome “La Sapienza”.
Rome Cup 2026
The Rome Cup 2026 is a multi day event dedicated to robotics and
innovation across three key areas – robotics, artificial intelligence
and life sciences – and with a strategic vision: focusing on the younger generations.
Organized by Fondazione Mondo Digitale and the University of Rome “La Sapienza”, the event brings together schools, universities, research centers and companies to discuss about robotics, artificial intelligence and emerging technologies.
Now in its 19th year, the initiative features conferences, robotics competitions, workshops and career guidance sessions, with the aim of nurturing talent and skills to build a sustainable and inclusive future.
Since 2007, Rome Cup has been encouraging the younger generation to
study scientific subjects and developing skills and professional
profiles for the job market. Each edition introduces new “themes” (women
in science, robotics spin-offs, Industry 4.0, life sciences, etc.) to
forge connections and enrich the innovation ecosystem through
vertical and cross-sector partnerships.
The event saw the participation of over 4000 students, involving 100 teams in the robotics competitions, 32 teams in creative contests, 11 universities, 17 university careers talks and an exhibition area featuring prototypes from 53 organizations.
The central theme of this edition was augmented intelligence as a paradigm for human-centered, inclusive and sustainable development of technological innovation and its application ecosystems.
Duckietown at the Rome Cup 2026
Duckietown, represented by Jacopo Tani, Ph.D., was part of a panel of judges tasked with assigning an award to the best project participating in the robotics creative contest. The “20°Trofeo Internazionale di robotica Città di Roma [20th International Robotics Trophy, City of Rome]” (Rescue Line, Explorer Junior, Explorer Senior, Robotic arms) took place as well.
Prototype robotic applications were presented (assistance,
agriculture, etc.) in various categories: AgroBOT, CoBOT, DroneBOT,
MareBOT, NonniBOT, TirBOT, and this year also a HealthBOT category.
Following a brief presentation session, the jury composed by Ezia Palmeri, senior official at the Ministry of Education and Merit; Fabrizio Corradi, psychotechnologist and expert in assistive technologies, augmentative and alternative communication, and artificial intelligence at LUMSA and the Leonarda Vaccari Institute; Alessia Lo Bosco, Director of Vocational Training Services for the Metropolitan City of Rome; Massimiliano Dibitonto, Head of Product and Services Guidelines at Olivetti and Jacopo Tani, co-founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Duckietown.
The winning teams from the 2026 edition:
MAREBOT – Thalassa Boat, IIS Marconi Pieralisi
TIRBOT – Road Safety and AI, IIS De Santis
NONNIBOT – Word Shield, IIS Giordano
AGROBOT – Diet Bot, IIS Russell (Cles)
COBOT – Aura, IIS Avogadro
RobotCT – IIS Vaccarini (Catani
Photo credits: Francesco Vignali
Learn more about Duckietown
Duckietown is a set of tools that enables hands-on robotics and AI learning experiences.
It is designed to help teach, learn, and do research: from exploring the fundamentals of computer science and automation to pushing the boundaries of human knowledge.
