Opportunity brief
Mandatory registrations on : https://techfest.org/competitions/oll
About:
The Techfest OLL Robotics Championship is a national platform for school students to design, build, and compete with robots, or pitch original engineering ideas, in front of a credible panel. Built around three tracks, RoboSumo for structural design and strategy, Roboracer for agile control and speed engineering, and the Robotics Innovation Challenge for original problem-solving and research, the championship gives students of every strength a track suited to them. A mandatory national online qualifier feeds into on-ground OLL Regional Qualifiers across five city hubs, with the top teams converging at the Techfest Grand Finale, IIT Bombay.
Structure:
- Eligibility: RoboSumo and Roboracer are open to all school students. The Robotics Innovation Challenge runs by age category: Junior (grades 4-7) and Senior (grades 8-12).
- Team size: 3 to 5 members per team, across all three tracks.
RoboSumo & Roboracer, Qualification Pathway:
- Round 1 – National Online Qualifier (Mandatory)
- Every team submits a 500-800 word technical abstract and a short video demonstration of their bot. Teams that clear Round 1 qualify for their nearest OLL Regional Qualifier.
- Round 2 – OLL Regional Qualifiers
- On-ground qualifiers across five city hubs (Mumbai, Kanpur, Delhi, Bangalore, Indore). The top 4 teams from each hub advance to the Grand Finale.
- RoboSumo: A 1v1 knockout pushing contest in a circular arena, where bots try to push the opponent out.
- Roboracer: A 1v1 knockout speed contest between RC bots racing down a shared track to the finish line.
Robotics Innovation Challenge:
- Runs on its own two-round structure (no OLL bypass).
- Round 1 – Online Qualifier
- Teams submit a problem write-up, technical abstract, design diagram, and a short video demonstration of their prototype.
- Round 2 – Grand Finale (IIT Bombay)
- Shortlisted teams present a live prototype demonstration and Q&A before a judging panel.
Timeline:
- Deadline of Registration - 30th Sept 2026
- Round 1 Submission Deadline (all 3 tracks) - 10th October 2026
- Round 1 Result Announcement - 17th October 2026
- Round 2 OLL Regional Qualifiers - Dates will be live on oll.co/techfest
- Round 2 OLL Regional Qualifiers Result - Same day as the OLL regional qualifier round
- Grand Finale: Finals of all 3 Tracks - 16th to 18th December 2026
Rules:
- Every participant must register online at techfest.org and will receive an ID for future reference.
- All bots across RoboSumo and Roboracer undergo a mandatory technical inspection before their first match, checking size, weight, power, and prohibited-feature compliance.
- The OLL Regional Qualifier pathway applies only to RoboSumo and Roboracer; the Robotics Innovation Challenge is evaluated solely through its own two-round online-to-onsite structure.
- Any team found using a bot or prototype that does not match its submitted specifications will be disqualified from the match or round in progress.
- Exact arena dimensions, goal sizes, and ring diameters may vary by up to 10% depending on venue constraints.
- Any idea, design, or bot submitted must be the team's own original work; plagiarism or use of pre-built commercial products without meaningful original modification will result in disqualification.
- Teams are expected to maintain safe and respectful conduct at all venues; unruly behaviour, venue damage, or interference with another team's bot or prototype can result in disqualification.
- Referee and judging panel decisions are final and not open to appeal, across all three tracks.
- Techfest and OLL reserve the right to amend match schedules, venues, or minor rule details in case of unavoidable circumstances, with reasonable prior notice to teams.
- The latest information will be that which is on the website; registered participants will be informed through mail about any changes.
- All modes of official communication will be through the Techfest e-mail (siddhi@techfest.org).