Can AI help secure the future of water?
Launch of Future Makers: AI Challenge for Critical Sustainability, delivered by the Digital Cooperation Organization in partnership with Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture, the Research, Development and Innovation Authority, and King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology.
Future Makers asks a defining question: Can AI help secure the future of water?
As the first challenge delivered under DCO’s NexaBridge open innovation initiative, Future Makers connects priority water-sector needs with innovators across DCO Member States, creating a structured pathway for promising solutions to move from application through technical development, demonstration and potential validation.
The challenge is seeking existing AI-enabled research, prototypes, technologies and operational solutions addressing areas including:
- Smart desalination and energy optimization
- Brine management and resource recovery
- Digital twins and non-revenue water reduction
- Water-quality monitoring and wastewater efficiency
- Groundwater governance and demand analytics
Applications are open to innovators, researchers, startups and technology teams across DCO Member States with AI-enabled solutions capable of addressing the identified water-sector challenges. Applications close on 4 October 2026.
For more infromation & application