BAKU, Azerbaijan, Sept. 10, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — The St. Petersburg State University team has won the 2025 ICPC World Championship at the 49th Annual International Collegiate Programming Contest World Finals.140 elite problem-solving teams from over 50 countries across six continents participated in the event at the Baku Convention Center, in Azerbaijan’s capital. After intense competition, the team representing the North Eurasian region posted the highest score across 12 coding challenges and scooped the top spot.
As one of ICPC’s key supporters for the competition, Huawei had presented contestants with a real-world challenge related to the optimization of photographs in a mobile device gallery. The ICPC Challenge powered by Huawei was designed to help bridge the gap between theoretical algorithmic knowledge and industrial application. The three-hour competition concluded with the University of Tokyo team—who would later finish as runners-up to St. Petersburg in the main Championship—claiming the Challenge prize.
The Tokyo trio celebrating victory in the ICPC Challenge
Dr. Bill Poucher, Executive Director of ICPC noted, “What extraordinary talent! Congratulations to the St. Petersburg State University team and the University of Tokyo team. Thanks also go to our sponsors with a special thanks to Huawei for their support of the ICPC World Finals Challenge.”
Xiao Chunpeng, the Director of Huawei’s Contest Management Dept, said, “AI is moving out of the lab into the real world. This creates unprecedented opportunities for today’s youth. Huawei has always recognized the value of basic research, and we are honored to have the chance to work closely with organizations like the ICPC on these international contests. By sharing the greatest challenges that industry currently faces, we are able to help the world’s best and brightest minds explore new ways to address these challenges. This kind of work is what will continuously drive the industry forward in this age of AI.”
Huawei plans to work alongside the ICPC to release more challenges for software enthusiasts online, including challenges in AI and algorithms.
Huawei and the ICPC will also deepen their partnership through an array of activities such as training camps, championship challenges, and tech talks. Together, they aim to foster a new generation of talent and explore ways to solve real-world problems that industries face in AI, computing, and operators used for computing.
Xiao explained that global talent competitions are not only used to test contestants’ skills, but also to build bridges between talent ecosystems and different industries. “Huawei is a proud supporter of these platforms that help even more outstanding talent emerge around the world, and hopes future competitions will help young people translate their new ideas and technical skills into social progress and industry development.”
