The USA Artificial Intelligence Olympiad (USAAIO) successfully conducted the USA–North America AI Olympiad 2026 Round 2 from 4 to 6 April 2026 at Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Nearly 200 top-performing students, selected from Round 1, advanced to this stage. Participants traveled from across the United States, Canada, and other countries to compete in one of the most advanced pre-college AI competitions in North America.
The three-day event combined academic programming, competition, and community engagement.
Program Overview
Day 0 – Campus Experience and Admissions Programming (4 April)
Participants attended sessions organized by MIT Admissions, including an official information session and a guided campus tour. The program provided insights into academic life, research opportunities, and the admissions process at leading institutions in science and technology.
Day 1 – Plenary Talks and Competition (5 April)
The first competition day featured plenary talks and advanced problem-solving tasks.
Speakers included:
- Prof. Haribabu Arthanri (Harvard University)
- Prof. Michael Brenner (Harvard University & Google)
- Mr. Junlin Jiang (Yale University & Pathway)
Participants worked on complex challenges, including:
- Transformer Architecture & Linear Attention – implementation of attention mechanisms and Transformer-based models
- AI for Scientific Discovery (Inverse Physics Problem) – applying AI methods to reconstruct physical systems and governing equations
Day 2 – Advanced Challenges and Closing Session (6 April)
The second day, hosted at MIT, included additional advanced tasks:
- Diffusion Models and Generative AI
- Semi-Supervised Image Classification
- AI and Scientific Computing (Function Decomposition)
A concluding session was held for participants and parents, including a review of competition tasks, solution approaches, and future directions of the Olympiad.
Awards and Next Stage
Based on performance in Round 2, participants will be awarded Gold, Silver, and Bronze medals. Top-performing students will be invited to the USA AI Olympiad Training Camp (Round 3), scheduled for June 2026 at Harvard University.
Acknowledgments
The event was supported by a range of academic and industry partners, including Harvard Medical School, MIT Admissions, Google, Jane Street, Pathway, and others, whose contributions enabled the successful delivery of the competition.
About USAAIO
The USA AI Olympiad is dedicated to:
- Organizing K–12 AI Olympiad competitions
- Selecting and training national teams for international AI Olympiads, including IOAI
- Supporting the development of AI knowledge and skills among students
