MIT Hacking Medicine Riyadh – An initiative of KACST, Badir and the MIT-IBK Society

Pictured (Left to right): Viqar Hussain (Associate Licensing Officer and MIT Hacking Medicine Core Team Member, MIT), Dr. Prince Turki bin Saud bin Mohammed Al-Saud (President of the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology), His Excellency the Minister of Health of Saudi Arabia Dr. Tawfig Fawzan AlRabiah, and Dr. Haleema Al Amri (Research Scientist at R&DC, Saudi Aramco and Chair of the MIT-IBK Society) present the first place award in the Wearable Devices for Healthcare track to the Brailling team during the closing ceremony of the Saudi Grand Hack. 

The MIT-IBK Society organized to bring MIT Hacking Medicine to the Middle East for the first time held at Princess Noura bint Abdulrahman University, Riyadh, KSA, November 29-December 1, 2018.  We thank their partners KACST and Badir for their support in making this event possible.  

Participants in the Saudi Grand Hack convened over the three days to brainstorm and build innovative solutions with hundreds of like-minded engineers, clinicians, designers, developers, and business people.  

Twitter Hashtag: #SaudiHack2018

The Hackathon revolved around 10 technical tracks each organized by former fellows of the MIT Ibn Khaldun Fellowship for Saudi Arabian Women.  Special thanks to Dr. Areej Al-Wabil for her leadership and dedication to the organization of this event.

1. Mental Health HackathonLead by Dr. Sanaa Alattas (KAU) and Dr. Haya Alhumaiyani (KAU) 

2. Brain Health HackathonLead by Dr. Sufana AlMashhadi (KFMC) and Dr. Noura AlHaqbani (KSU) 

3. Connected Health: Virtual Care & Telehealth & TelemedicineLead by Dr. Hebah ElGibreen (KSU) and Dr. Heba Kurdi (KSU) 

4. Assistive Technology & Reimagining AgeingLead by Dr. Thamraa Alshahrani (PNU) & Dr. Areej Al-Wabil (KACST) 

5. Blockchain and Artificial Intelligence for Healthcare and Forensic ScienceLead by Dr. Shada AlSalamah (KSU) and Dr. Omaima Bamasag (KAU) 

6. Data Science for Global HealthLead by Dr. Hala Al Shamlan (KSU) and Dr. Sarah Alhumoud (Imam U) 

7. Wearable Devices for HealthcareLead by Dr. Haleema A. Alamri (Saudi Aramco) and Dr. Jwaher Al Ghamdi (IAU) 

8. Cancer Innovation ChallengeLead by Dr. Amal Al Dossary (IAU) 

9. Human-Centered Design for HealthLead by Dr. Sumayah Alsulaiman (IAU) and Dr. Sufana Almashhadi (KFMC) 

10.  Dental Hack: Challenging Oral CareLead by Nabeela Abughazalah (PNU) and Amany Alshawi (Director, KACST's Women's Program) http://hackingmedicine.mit.edu/saudi-hack-2018/