Top Collegiate Software Programmers to Compete for World Championship at IBM-Sponsored "Battle of the Brains"

WACO, Texas, June 23, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- The next generation of elite computer software engineers will meet in Ekaterinburg, Russia, on June 25 to compete in the 38^th Annual World Finals of the IBM-sponsored (NYSE: IBM) ACM International Collegiate Programming Contest (ICPC).

Headquartered at Baylor University and known as the Battle of the Brains, the world's oldest and most prestigious programming contest in 2014 will be hosted by Ural Federal University. The contest serves as a proving ground for the top collegiate programmers and will challenge them to solve complex real-world problems under a strict five hour deadline. Of the 122 teams competing in the contest, 19 represent the United States. Each team comprises three students and only one team will emerge victorious to claim "The World's Smartest Trophy." 

In an effort to best prepare them for their future careers, this year's event activities will expose contestants to key emerging trends such as cognitive computing. The victory of IBM's Watson on Jeopardy! in 2011 ushered in the era of cognitive systems. One of the most significant innovations in IBM's history, Watson is revolutionary in its ability to interact in natural language, process vast and disparate forms of big data, and learn from each interaction. Watson can sift through and analyze big data at unprecedented speed to assist business professionals with insights in many industries, including healthcare and customer service. Today, Watson is delivered as a cloud service via the Watson Ecosystem, a community providing an outlet for developers and content providers to create the next generation of cognitive applications.

"Our goal as the sponsor of this event is to recognize and celebrate excellence in the next generation of computer scientists, and to provide insight and knowledge that will help them successfully transition from students into business and technology professionals," said Alain Azagury, Director of IBM Software Group Technical Strategy, Member of IBM Academy of Technology and Sponsorship Executive of the ICPC. "We expose students to the latest technology trends, such as big data analytics, cloud computing, cognitive computing and Watson capabilities." He added, "In Ekaterinburg, IBM will have the opportunity to engage with the very best and brightest students of computing in the world. The competition enables us to give top priority to elite talent. In fact, each year many members of the winning team are generally offered positions with IBM as interns or full-time employees."

The 122 teams emerged from local and regional ICPC competitions this past fall. Initially, selection took place from a field of more than 300,000 students in computing disciplines worldwide. A record number of students advanced to the regional level, as 32,043 contestants from 2,286 universities in 94 countries on six continents competed at more than 300 sites, all with the goal of earning one of the coveted 122 invitations to Russia.

"In 1970, the ACM-ICPC began as a competition among the universities of Texas and has transformed into a worldwide phenomenon extending throughout northeastern Europe and the Russian Republic in the 1990's," said Dr. Bill Poucher, ICPC Executive Director and Baylor University Professor.  "We are thrilled to open doors of opportunity for these talented young students as they face real world challenges in a competitive environment.  We are excited to see this elite level of talent compete in Ekaterinburg with Ural Federal University as host and IBM as sponsor."  

The ICPC will begin at 10:00 a.m. local time in Ekaterinburg on June 25. A live broadcast of the contest, facilitated by SKB Kontur, will air on ICPCLive.com. 

The ICPC sponsorship, in cooperation with the world's largest educational and scientific computing society, ACM, is just one of IBM's many university-focused programs to better educate millions of students for a more competitive IT workforce. The IBM Academic Initiative offers faculty at colleges and universities a wide range of benefits, including no-charge access to IBM software, hardware, technology, and tools. In addition, IBM offers The Extreme Blue premier internship program for top notch students pursuing software development and MBA degrees. Since 1999, nearly 400 patent disclosures have been submitted from Extreme Blue participants. To date, dozens of graduates of the United States Extreme Blue program have identified themselves as former ICPC contestants. 

Participating Schools by Region:

Africa and the Middle East: Alexandria University - Faculty of Engineering; American University of Beirut; Cairo University - Faculty of Computers and Information; German University in Cairo; Princess Sumaya University for Technology; Tishreen University; University of Cape Town

Asia: Amrita University; Anil Neerukonda Institute of Technology and Sciences; Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology; Beijing Institute of Technology; Beijing Normal University; Bina Nusantara University; Delhi Technological University; FPT University; Fudan University; Fuzhou University; Ho Chi Minh City University of Science; Hunan University; Indian Institute of Technology – Bombay; Indian Institute of Technology – Indore; Indian Institute of Technology – Madras; Indian Institute of Technology – Roorkee; International Institute of Information Technology-Hyderabad; Jilin University; Korea University; Kyoto University; National Sun-Yat-Sen University; National Taiwan University; National University of Singapore; Peking University; Renmin University of China; Shahjalal University of Science and Technology; Shanghai Jiao Tong University; Sharif University of Technology; South China Agricultural University; South China University of Technology; SungKyunKwan University; The Chinese University of Hong Kong; The University of Tokyo; Tokyo Institute of Technology; Tsinghua University; University of Electronic Science and Technology of China; University of Indonesia; University of Sciences DPR Korea; University of Tsukuba; Zhejiang University; Zhejiang University of Technology; Zhongshan (Sun Yat-sen) University

Europe & the Russian Federation: Belarusian State University; Comenius University; Delft University of Technology; ETH Zürich; International IT University; Izhevsk State Technical University; Jagiellonian University in Krakow; Kaunas University of Technology; Moscow Institute of Physics & Technology; Moscow State University; Moscow State University – Tashkent; National Research University Higher School of Economics; National University of Science and Technology "MISiS"; Nazarbayev University; Novosibirsk State University; Odessa National Mechnikov University; Petrozavodsk State University; Saratov State University; St. Petersburg National Research University of IT; Mechanics and Optics; St. Petersburg State University; Taras Shevchenko Kiev National University; Taurida V.I. Vernadsky National University; Universitaet des Saarlandes; Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya; University of Bucharest; University of Cambridge; University of Latvia; University of Warsaw; University of Wroclaw; University of Zagreb; Ural Federal University; V.N. Karazin Kharkiv National University; Vinnytsia National Technical University

Latin America: Escuela Superior De Computo Instituto Politecnico Nacional; Instituto Militar de Engenharia; Instituto Tecnologico de Santo Domingo; Pontificia Universidad Catolica del Peru; Universidad Autonoma de Aguascalientes; Universidad Catolica San Pablo; Universidad Nacional de Colombia – Bogota; Universidad Panamericana Campus Bonaterra; Universidad Tecnologica de Pereira; Universidad de Buenos Aires – FCEN; Universidad de Chile; Universidad de Oriente – Sede Antonio Maceo; Universidade Estadual de Campinas; Universidade Federal de Campina Grande; Universidade Federal de Pernambuco; Universidade de Sao Paulo; Universidade de Sao Paulo - Campus de Sao Carlos

North America: Carnegie Mellon University, Iowa State University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Michigan Technological University, New York University, Northwestern University, Stanford University, The University of Texas at Brownsville, University of California Irvine, University of California at Berkeley, University of Central Florida, University of Chicago, University of Lethbridge, University of Maryland, University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, University of Southern California, University of Toronto, University of Virginia, University of Wisconsin – Madison, Vanderbilt University, Virginia Tech

South Pacific: The University of Waikato, University of New South Wales

About the ACM-ICPC
Headquartered at Baylor University, the ACM-ICPC is a global competition among the world's university students, nurturing new generations of talent in the science and art of information technology. For more information about the ACM-ICPC, including downloadable high resolution photographs and videos, the complete World Finals roster and final standings, visit ICPC headquarters and ICPCNews. Additional information can be found via the "Battle of the Brains" podcast series. For IBM's insights, visit the company's University Relations page. Follow the contest on Twitter @BrainBattleICPC and @ICPCNews, #ICPC2014.  

About IBM
IBM is the world's largest information technology and service provider. IBM invests in high business values and strategic markets such as big data analytics, cloud computing and cognitive computing. Made with IBM, these capabilities address the needs of clients and the society. IBM software engineers around the globe work to solve real-world business issues for clients in more than 170 countries. IBM provides industry solutions in areas such as health care, finance, smarter commerce, smarter cities, energy, utility, communications, public service, transportation, manufacturing, and many others.  For more information, visit www.ibm.com/software.

About ACM
ACM, the Association for Computing Machinery, is the world's largest educational and scientific computing society, uniting computing educators, researchers and professionals to inspire dialogue, share resources and address the field's challenges. ACM strengthens the computing profession's collective voice through strong leadership, promotion of the highest standards, and recognition of technical excellence. ACM supports the professional growth of its members by providing opportunities for life-long learning, career development, and professional networking.

About Ural Federal University
Ural Federal University is one of the leading research institutions in Russia, focusing on economics, social sciences, humanities, natural sciences and mathematics. Since 2008 it bears the name of its former student, Boris Yeltsin, who in 1991 was elected the first president of the Russian Federation. The university has 18 departments which offer over 120 bachelor's and 80 master's programs. The university's enrollment is over 45,000 students, including more than 6,000 students studying information technologies and computer science. As the host of the 2014 ACM-ICPC World Finals, Ural Federal University becomes the second Russian university to host the contest, following St. Petersburg National Research University of Information Technologies, Mechanics and Optics (ITMO), the 2013 host.

About SKB Kontur
SKB Kontur is one of the largest software developers in Russia. The company is a well-known leader in the sphere of software for EDI, technologies for accounting and business administration automation. Founded more than a quarter of a century ago, SKB Kontur continues to grow dynamically. High growth rates are based on innovations developed through its large R&D department. The company's new products are differentiated by original and simple solutions that use unique technologies. Of particular note, 13 ACM-ICPC Ural finalists work at SKB Kontur.

Media Contact:
Chas Kurtz
For the International Collegiate Programming Contest (ICPC)
Tierney
(215) 790-4386
[email protected] 

SOURCE ICPC