Xingu Students Form Brazil's First Indigenous Team for International Robotics Competition

Students from the Juruna Indigenous people have formed Brazil's first Indigenous team to compete in the First Tech Challenge (FTC), one of the world's leading student robotics competitions. The milestone was achieved at the Francisca de Oliveira Lemos Juruna Indigenous School, in the Boa Vista village of Vitória do Xingu, Pará, just two years after the students were first introduced to robotics.

The Tecendo Saberes com Robótica project, launched in 2024 by SESI Pará, brings together 14 Indigenous students in two teams: Jurunabots, which competes in the First Lego League (FLL), and Yudjatech, which competes in the more advanced FTC category, using metal structures, motors, sensors, and advanced programming.

Hermelinho Ribeiro Juruna, 18, a member of the Yudjatech team, said his interest began out of curiosity: "Today's world is different. We have a cellphone in the palm of our hand, and it shows us so many possibilities. I wanted to learn how to build robots and show that we, Indigenous people, can also be part of science and innovation."

In 2025, Jurunabots became the first Indigenous team to compete in the national stage of the SESI Robotics Tournament, and this year won the Rookie Award at the FLL national finals. Yudjatech is preparing for the FTC regional competition in Belém in 2027. SESI Pará plans to expand the project to ten more Indigenous schools across the region.

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