KOTA KINABALU: July 6, 2026 – More than 200 students from across Sabah took part in the Sabah Smart School IoT Hackathon 2026 (SSSIH26), a two-month online programme which ran from 25 April to 28 June.
Organised by the Digital Internet Association Malaysia (iaM), the event focused on three themes – Smart Cities, Smart Agriculture and Smart Tourism – with the aim of sharpening participants’ critical thinking, problem-solving and teamwork skills, while also expanding access to digital education for both urban and rural students.
Team Bleu from SMK Sanzac in Kota Kinabalu emerged as champions, followed by Team Estrax from SMKA Tun Juhar in Sandakan as runners-up, and Team Tree from SMK Tambunan in third place. Fourth and fifth positions went to SMKKJ Tech 2.0 from SMK Kunak Jaya and Team DriveHeroes from SM Sung Siew in Sandakan respectively. All winners received cash prizes totalling RM2,000, along with medals and T-shirts.
“I hope the 2027 edition can be held physically to strengthen collaboration between students, teachers, industry partners and the Sabah State Education Department,” said Muddin Beting, Deputy Director of the Student Development Sector, during the online closing ceremony.
A total of 270 IoT component kits were distributed to schools to support hands-on learning before participants developed their own prototypes.
The programme supports efforts to strengthen digital skills and STEM education, in line with the aspirations of the Sabah Maju Jaya Development Plan and the 13th Malaysia Plan.
Registration for the national-level Smart School IoT-AI Hackathon 2026 is expected to open in the second week of July.
The hackathon was supported by Hap Seng Consolidated Sdn Bhd as main sponsor, together with Pulsy Technology Sdn Bhd, the Sabah State Education Department and the Malaysian Ministry of Education.
Reporting by TvSabah
