Abu Dhabi is preparing to host a historic event in drone racing as the Abu Dhabi Autonomous Racing League (A2RL), in collaboration with the Drone Champions League (DCL), announces the world’s first AI-only drone racing finale. This groundbreaking competition will take place on April 11-12, 2025, at Marina Halls 1 & 2 in ADNEC.

The A2RL x DCL Autonomous Drone Championship will feature 14 elite international teams competing in a series of high-speed challenges, all without human pilots. The drones will be equipped with NVIDIA Jetson Orin NX modules and will rely entirely on artificial intelligence to navigate, make decisions, and aim for victory.

One of the key attractions of the event will be the “AI vs Human” challenge, where top AI racing systems will compete against some of the best drone pilots in a thrilling knockout format. This competition will test various aspects of technology such as deep learning, sensor fusion, drone agility, and precision, all under unpredictable racing conditions. The event will offer a substantial prize pool of $1 million.

In conjunction with the races, the A2RL Summit 2.0 on April 11 will gather global leaders in AI, robotics, and autonomous mobility to discuss future innovations that are shaping the industry. The event is open to the public and free to attend, attracting tech enthusiasts, drone racing fans, students, and families. Pre-registration is required at registration.a2rl.io/register.

With its exciting AI-driven competitions and forward-thinking summit, the A2RL event is poised to redefine the landscape of autonomous racing in Abu Dhabi.