Classroom

Verizon Opens Competition for Creative 5G AR/VR and AI Uses in K–12

Institutions that submit innovative solutions have the chance to win funding and support from the communications giant to bring their ideas to fruition.

Eli Zimmerman

Eli is Associate Editor for EdTech Magazine Higher Education. When not in the office, Eli is busy scanning the web for the latest podcasts or stepping into the boxing ring for a few rounds.

Augmented and virtual reality is beginning to come into its own as a functional education tool, but there is still substantial room for growth. To help spur new creative uses for the burgeoning tech, Verizon and NYC Media Lab are inviting education non-profits, universities, startups and research organizations to come up with ways to use VR/AR or artificial intelligence in under-served middle schools.

Submitted projects will use mixed reality or artificial intelligence to solve challenges purveying K–12 schools, including boosting student engagement, support for students with special needs and supplementing STEM curriculum.

The top 10 submissions will each be awarded $100,000, as well as access to 5G nodes, Verizon 5G training and support teams to build and implement the winning submissions in select schools.

“When we think about the youth in this country and what is needed to prepare students to be competitive in an increasingly tech-dependent world,” said Rose Kirk, Verizon's chief corporate social responsibility officer, in a press release. “We need to change the educational opportunities and the trajectory of the lives of a lot of students. 5G will open doors in the classroom we can’t even imagine yet, which will ultimately give students the power to be more successful, more engaged, and give them access to higher education and new career paths.”

Institutions will be able to submit their ideas from Oct. 15 to Nov. 30, 2018 to Verizon at 5GEdTechChallenge.com.