I am excited to announce the winners of the 2026 Digital Animation Award sponsored by Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) for FIRST® Tech Challenge and FIRST® Robotics Competition! The 2026 Digital Animation Award is offered to help encourage students to cultivate skills in design and creation of animation while telling a story about the impact of technology on society.
The winning teams receive a trophy and a sponsorship for the 2026-2027 season from WPI.
Here are this year’s winners:
FIRST Tech Challenge – Team 21536 “Team Stealth” from Kansas City, KS, USA.
Judges’ Comments: This is such a great use of the stop-motion medium, and we were impressed by the detail and expressivity in the animation. This video has some excellent storytelling about the pervasive issue of plastic pollution. We love that this video shows the potential downsides of the introduction of new inventions and includes a call to action. Excellent work!
FIRST Robotics Competition – Team 5298 “The E-Tech Chargers” from Astoria, NY, USA.
Judges’ Comments: We love so much about this video: the color palette, cute art style, expressive characters, and consistent story that tells both the history and future of a simple invention that changed the world. Congratulations, it is clear a lot of love went into this project!
Congratulations to all the teams who submitted for this award! You can view all of the fantastic submissions on the FIRST Tech Challenge and FIRST Robotics Competition playlists.