| | INSIDE THE BAY AREA’S PREMIER STEM PREP HUB | July 2026 |
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| | Summer's Grand Finale, Season's Grand Opening |
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This July, the spotlight belongs to our VEX AI Summer Academy at UC Berkeley: our best one yet, and an unforgettable week of building, learning, and campus life for students from across the country. Back home, our summer camps are rolling into their final week across all four centers, and the 2026-27 competition season kicks off in just two weeks. Also inside: a brand-new AI Mastery program, your last chance to join Innovation Academy Batch 14, and your complete tournament calendar. Let's dive in. |
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| One Week at Berkeley, a Semester of Growth |
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This year's academy was our best one yet. For one week in July, students from across the country lived, learned, and built at UC Berkeley, packing a semester's worth of growth into seven days.
They didn't just learn about AI, they built with it. From neural networks and computer vision to AI agents and autonomous navigation, students worked hands-on with Raspberry Pi 5 computers, Coral AI accelerators, Intel RealSense depth cameras, and the VEX AI platform, the same class of technology powering the industry today. Every team designed and built a working prototype, then presented it to peers, mentors, and industry guests.
Beyond the classroom, students toured UC Berkeley's engineering labs, lived in campus residence halls, and connected with industry professionals from companies like AWS who are shaping the future of AI.
That's the power of VEX AI: it turns the biggest concepts in modern robotics into something students can touch, test, and master. These students didn't just glimpse the future of robotics. They left prepared to build it. |
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| Competition Season is Here |
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| Mark your calendars! First tournament August 15th |
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Summer may be winding down, but robotics season is just getting started.
The first VEX IQ and V5 tournaments of the 2026-27 season kick off Saturday, August 15, opening another exciting year of design, programming, and competition. Across every Robolabs center, teams are already deep into the new games, Level Up (VEX IQ) and Override (V5): building new robots, testing prototypes, and refining autonomous routines ahead of their first official events.
The work teams put in now lays the foundation for everything that follows, and we can't wait to cheer on the Robolabs community from local tournaments all the way to the VEX Robotics World Championship. |
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| | New Program: AI Tools Coaching |
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Every student will use AI. The question is whether they'll use it well.
Our AI Mastery program goes far beyond prompting. Students in grades 8 through 12 learn to create with AI: coding their own projects, building real things, researching deeply, and writing sharper. And they learn to learn with AI, using it to actually understand more instead of letting it do the thinking for them.
Professionals everywhere are racing to build these exact skills for an edge in the workplace. This program gives students that same edge at school, years ahead of everyone else, with the judgment and taste to know when to trust AI and when to push back on it.
Who: Grades 8-12
Format: Live online sessions, one hour per week (Fridays, 7:00-8:00 PM)
Now enrolling the next cohort. Spots are limited, so if your student is curious (or you know one who'd thrive), tap below and we'll reach out. |
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| | | | 💡 RoboFacts: Our Summer Academy Took Place Inside a Hub for Cutting-Edge Robotics Research
The Robolabs VEX AI Summer Academy took place inside Sutardja Dai Hall, home of CITRIS and the Banatao Institute: a 141,000-square-foot research hub packed with collaborative labs, advanced prototyping facilities, and the CITRIS Invention Lab.
And it gets better. The same building houses the EMBER Center, where Berkeley researchers study how AI systems can learn, adapt, and safely act in the physical world. Across campus, BAIR researchers are pushing the frontiers of artificial intelligence and robotics.
So while our students spent the week building autonomous robots, researchers just floors above them were working on the very same questions: How can machines see? How can they learn? How can they act intelligently in the real world?
Not a bad place to spend a week learning robotics. |
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| Last Week of Summer Camps! |
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This is it! The final week of summer camps runs August 3 to 7 across all four of our locations: Dublin, Fremont, San Jose Stevens Creek, and Evergreen.
Nine weeks of robots, creativity, and hands-on learning come down to one last week. Whether your child is a first-time builder or a seasoned VEX IQ pro, there's still time for one more week of engineering, problem-solving, and fun. A few spots remain, so grab yours before the summer wraps! |
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| | From Idea to Patent to Publication |
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Batch 14 of the Robolabs Innovation Academy kicks off the first week of August, and this is your last chance to join.
Innovation Academy is our flagship 18-month program where students go from idea to invention and beyond. In the first year, students develop a unique solution to a real-world problem and file a provisional or utility patent. In the final stretch, they write and publish a research paper based on their innovation. The entire experience is fully online, collaborative, and led by experienced mentors.
This program is ideal for students who want to: Extend what they've learned in robotics into real-world applications Build a college-ready portfolio that showcases creativity and initiative Collaborate with a driven cohort of peers from across the country
Applications close this week and spaces are limited. If your student is ready, or you know someone who would thrive here, reach out today. |
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Your Competition Calendar |
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Tournament season is approaching soon with VEX IQ and V5 events scheduled through February. Circle these dates and get ready - every tournament is a chance to qualify for states! |
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| | Hands-on and immersive VEX and FIRST Robotics for kindergarten - 12th grade. |
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| | Fun, and valuable Robotics learning over a break. For students from 1st to 12th grade. |
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| | Journey to become a high-school author and inventor! |
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| | Leverage the entirety of Robolabs to get you into your dream college. |
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| Summer Academy at UC Berkeley |
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| Explore AI and robotics at UC Berkeley with expert mentors. |
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| | Design and code real-world apps from scratch. |
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| | Master SolidWorks & Onshape to design real robotics parts. |
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| | Create, prototype, and build your own product with 3D printing and CNC milling. |
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| | DUBLIN ROBOTICS CLUB, ROBOLABS DUBLIN |
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