Key Takeaways
- Three consecutive editions, with participation growing steadily from the 8th to the 10th, reaching 1,028 participants at the 10th.
- 12 competition events and 530+ young pilots competing on the same stage, with winners advancing directly to provincial and national rounds.
- AKI covers the full competition cycle: announcements, rule publication, event guides, results notices and media aggregation.
- Coverage by 10+ mainstream media outlets on their own initiative, including China News Service, Nanfang Daily and Guangdong Radio and Television Station.
- Zhuhai, Hengqin and Macao working together to build a new low-altitude science ecosystem in the Greater Bay Area.
On May 17, 2026, in Zhuhai, 1,028 young people gathered for the 10th Zhuhai-Hengqin-Macao Aerospace Science Carnival, a comprehensive youth science and technology competition combining drone racing, programming challenges, creative design and practical reconnaissance. Beyond the venue, from the first national competition notice in late March to the final award announcement in late May, the entire two-month flow of competition information was handled on the AKI platform.
This is more than a competition. It is the Zhuhai selection round of the Guangdong provincial contest of the National Youth Drone Competition, guided by the Chinese Society of Aeronautics and Astronautics and the Guangdong Aerospace Society and other organizations, and hosted by Zhuhai Low-Altitude Investment, the event pools resources across Zhuhai, Hengqin and Macao and covers students from primary school through high school. The AKI platform is the digital hub behind this complex multi-level competition system.
1. Three Editions: Digital Evolution from a Small Start to 1,000 Participants
The Zhuhai-Hengqin-Macao Aerospace Science Carnival did not reach this scale overnight. From the 8th to the 10th edition, its growth clearly reflects the power of digital competition management:
| Edition | Date | Scale and Highlights | Media Coverage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8th Edition | May 2024 | Zhuhai selection round launched, with a record number of registrations | China Daily Website, Nanfang Daily, Zhuhai Net |
| 9th Edition | May 2025 | Brand upgraded to the “Sky City Cup”, with winners advancing to provincial and national rounds | Yueke Net, Zhuhai Net, Guangdong Radio and Television Station, Nanfang Daily |
| 10th Edition | May 2026 | 1,028 participants, 12 events, 530+ young pilots, plus a new low-altitude carnival section in November | China News Service, Toutiao, Nanfang Plus, Zhuhai Special Zone Daily, Zhuhai High-Tech Zone and 10+ other media outlets |
Three clear trends emerge:Growing participation (from a registration record at the 8th edition to more than 1,000 participants at the 10th), A more complete competition system (from single-discipline events to branded “Sky City Cup” operations and a new low-altitude carnival section), Sustained growth in media reach (from 3 to 4 to 10+ mainstream media outlets reporting on their own initiative)
Across all three editions, this information — announcements, rules, guides, results and media coverage — has been published and managed centrally through the AKI platform.
2. Twelve Events, One Platform: Digital Support Across the Competition Lifecycle
The 10th Zhuhai-Hengqin-Macao Aerospace Science Carnival featured 12 competition events, covering multiple dimensions of youth drone competition:
- Flight control: individual obstacle missions and relay obstacle missions
- Programming challenges: programming obstacle missions
- Creative design: racing aircraft design
- First-person view flight: multirotor traversal missions
- Simulated flight: fixed-point return missions and drone countermeasures
- Practical applications: reconnaissance strike missions, fixed-point inspection missions, and assembly and transport missions
- Model competition: AG600 “Kunlong” electric glider model endurance timing and remote-controlled fixed-wing pylon landing
With 12 events, 1,028 participants and more than 530 “young pilots” competing at the same time, this complex event places high demands on information management. The AKI platform plays a different role at each stage:
Stage 1: Announcements and Rule Publication
On March 31, 2026, the Chinese Society of Aeronautics and Astronautics issued the Notice on Holding the 10th National Youth Drone Competition, and the Guangdong Aerospace Society released a preliminary notice for the provincial contest on the same day. Then, on April 29–30, the competition rules and detailed instructions for the Zhuhai round were published on the AKI platform.
From the national notice to municipal rules, information for all three levels of the competition was published and synchronized on the AKI platform.
Stage 2: Promotion and Participant Guidance
From May 5 to 13, the organizers published a series of event notices and detailed guides on the AKI platform, keeping participants, instructors and parents informed about schedules, venues, event rules and key points to note.
Stage 3: Results Publication and Awards
Less than 72 hours after the competition ended (May 20), results were published on the AKI platform. Six days later (May 26), the award announcement was released, including the complete winner lists for all 12 events and the list of outstanding instructors. All PDF documents are available for download through the AKI storage and distribution system.
Efficiency at a glance: Just 3 days from the competition (May 17) to results publication (May 20), and just 9 days to the award announcement (May 26). Without a digital platform, compiling and publishing results for a competition with more than 1,000 participants usually takes one to two weeks.
3. More Than a Management Tool: AKI's Media Aggregation Capability
One defining feature of the Zhuhai-Hengqin-Macao Aerospace Science Carnival is its high media reach across multiple channels. The 10th edition received unsolicited coverage from the following mainstream media outlets:
- National Media: China News Service, China Daily Website
- Provincial Media: Nanfang Daily / Nanfang Plus, Guangdong Radio and Television Station / Yue TV, Yueke Net
- Local Media: Zhuhai Special Zone Daily / Zhuhai Net, Zhuhai High-Tech Zone
- Industry Channels: Guangdong Aerospace Society, Zhuhai Automation Society
- New Media Platforms: Toutiao, WeChat official accounts
The AKI platform built an automatic media coverage aggregation page for the competition, collecting and presenting coverage scattered across media channels in one place. Specifically:
- Organizers no longer need to manually collect coverage links from each media outlet.
- All coverage is organized by edition and timeline, forming a complete archive of brand communication.
- Participants, schools and parents can browse all public information about the competition in one place.
From 3 media outlets at the 8th edition to 10+ at the 10th: this growth alone shows that the transparency and communication efficiency brought by digital competition management are attracting more proactive media attention.
4. From Zhuhai to the Greater Bay Area: A Digital Ecosystem for Low-Altitude Science
The Zhuhai-Hengqin-Macao Aerospace Science Carnival is positioned as more than a single competition. The official framing of the 10th edition is “Building a New Ecosystem for Low-Altitude Science and Technology Education“ and ”Accelerating the Development of a New Low-Altitude Science Ecosystem in the Greater Bay Area“ — starting from Zhuhai and linking Hengqin and Macao, it is building a youth aerospace science platform covering the Greater Bay Area.
Behind this broader vision, AKI plays a clear and practical role:
- Information hub: competition notices are published level by level, from national to provincial to municipal, ensuring accurate and timely information delivery
- Operational efficiency: digitizing rule publication, results release and award announcements multiplies competition operation efficiency
- Reach amplifier: automatic aggregation of media coverage builds a cumulative effect for the competition brand
- Institutional memory: complete archives of the three editions remain on the platform as a reference for preparing the next one
The “November low-altitude carnival” section introduced at the 10th edition signals continued iteration and upgrading. As the digital foundation, the AKI platform will keep supporting this low-altitude science brand as it grows from Zhuhai to the Greater Bay Area.
Frequently Asked Questions About the Zhuhai-Hengqin-Macao Aerospace Science Carnival
Q1: What level of competition is the Zhuhai-Hengqin-Macao Aerospace Science Carnival?
It is the Zhuhai selection round of the Guangdong provincial contest of the National Youth Drone Competition. The National Youth Drone Competition is organized by the Chinese Society of Aeronautics and Astronautics and is a national youth science and technology competition. Winners of the Zhuhai selection round advance to the Guangdong provincial contest and then compete in the national final.
Q2: Which age groups of students is the competition open to?
The competition is open to all school stages, from primary school to high school. Different events have different requirements for age and skill level, as set out in the rules of each edition.
Q3: What role does the AKI platform play in the competition?
AKI provides a fully digital platform for competition information management: publishing event notices and competition rules, delivering participant guides, releasing results and awards, and automatically aggregating media coverage. It is not a back-office management system, but the digital hub for public information release and communication.
Q4: Can similar selection rounds run on the AKI platform?
Yes. The AKI competition management platform supports multi-level competition systems, from school-level selection to provincial and national rounds, all on one platform for information release, registration management, judging and results publication.
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