2026 AES’ Energy Innovation Challenge competitor portal
Welcome to AES’ Energy Innovation Challenge!
We’re excited you've chosen to join this exciting competition that brings together teams of graduate students from diverse backgrounds to create and present solutions to relevant problems the energy industry is facing.
Use this portal to access the 2026 challenge prompt, competition, timeline and key dates, and sign up for opportunities to help make your submission successful.
Competition timeline
Energy Innovation Challenge prompt and resources
Energy Innovation Challenge events
Virtual conversations October 5 through 14
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Virtual conversations offer you the ability to chat with our AES people representing various company functions and opportunities, including:
- Engineering & Technical
- Commercial
- Finance Innovation & Products
- Legal & Compliance
- and many more.
How do I sign up?
We use Microsoft Bookings to create 1:1 meetings between you and an AES person. Virtual conversations will take place from October 5th through 14th. We look forward to meeting you!
Virtual conversations October 5 through 14
Image
|
Virtual conversations offer you the ability to chat with our AES people representing various company functions and opportunities, including:
- Engineering & Technical
- Commercial
- Finance Innovation & Products
- Legal & Compliance
- and many more.
How do I sign up?
We use Microsoft Bookings to create 1:1 meetings between you and an AES person. Virtual conversations will take place from October 5th through 14th. We look forward to meeting you!
Company presentation
October 5
12:00 PM ET / 9:00 AM PT
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The Energy Innovation Challenge will kickoff round one of the competition with an introduction to our AES Executive Sponsors, Company and Values! Leading this year's presentation will be:
- Juan Ignacio Rubiolo, Executive VP and Chief Operating Officer
- Tish Mendoza, Executive VP and Chief HR Officer
Company presentation
October 5
12:00 PM ET / 9:00 AM PT
Image
| Image
|
The Energy Innovation Challenge will kickoff round one of the competition with an introduction to our AES Executive Sponsors, Company and Values! Leading this year's presentation will be:
- Juan Ignacio Rubiolo, Executive VP and Chief Operating Officer
- Tish Mendoza, Executive VP and Chief HR Officer
Interconnection Panel
October 8
3:00 PM ET / 12:00 PM PT
Image
|
The Interconnection Panel will explore the fundamentals of grid interconnection and provide additional context on this year's challenge topic. Participants are encouraged to attend to learn from industry experts and ask questions related to the competition prompt. The session will be recorded.
Image
|
Innovation Panel
The Innovation Panel, which took place on September 21, highlighted AES people driving innovation across the energy sector. The session also provided an overview of AES and career opportunities throughout the company.
Interconnection Panel
October 8
3:00 PM ET / 12:00 PM PT
Image
|
The Interconnection Panel will explore the fundamentals of grid interconnection and provide additional context on this year's challenge topic. Participants are encouraged to attend to learn from industry experts and ask questions related to the competition prompt. The session will be recorded.
Image
|
Innovation Panel
The Innovation Panel, which took place on September 21, highlighted AES people driving innovation across the energy sector. The session also provided an overview of AES and career opportunities throughout the company.
Round 1 submissions
Due October 14, 11:59 PM PT
Image
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By October 14, please submit a 5-minute video presentation explaining your solution. The objective of this exercise is to foster creativity and critical thinking skills. There are no wrong answers.
Submissions
- File naming conventions (TEAMNAME_Round_1)
Allowed filetypes (avi, mov, mp4, ogg, wav, webm, 256 MB limit.)
Round 1 submissions
Due October 14, 11:59 PM PT
Image
|
By October 14, please submit a 5-minute video presentation explaining your solution. The objective of this exercise is to foster creativity and critical thinking skills. There are no wrong answers.
Submissions
- File naming conventions (TEAMNAME_Round_1)
Allowed filetypes (avi, mov, mp4, ogg, wav, webm, 256 MB limit.)
Virtual conversations October 5 through 14
Image
|
Virtual conversations offer you the ability to chat with our AES people representing various company functions and opportunities, including:
- Engineering & Technical
- Commercial
- Finance Innovation & Products
- Legal & Compliance
- and many more.
How do I sign up?
We use Microsoft Bookings to create 1:1 meetings between you and an AES person. Virtual conversations will take place from October 5th through 14th. We look forward to meeting you!
Virtual conversations October 5 through 14
Image
|
Virtual conversations offer you the ability to chat with our AES people representing various company functions and opportunities, including:
- Engineering & Technical
- Commercial
- Finance Innovation & Products
- Legal & Compliance
- and many more.
How do I sign up?
We use Microsoft Bookings to create 1:1 meetings between you and an AES person. Virtual conversations will take place from October 5th through 14th. We look forward to meeting you!
Company presentation
October 5
12:00 PM ET / 9:00 AM PT
Image
| Image
|
The Energy Innovation Challenge will kickoff round one of the competition with an introduction to our AES Executive Sponsors, Company and Values! Leading this year's presentation will be:
- Juan Ignacio Rubiolo, Executive VP and Chief Operating Officer
- Tish Mendoza, Executive VP and Chief HR Officer
Company presentation
October 5
12:00 PM ET / 9:00 AM PT
Image
| Image
|
The Energy Innovation Challenge will kickoff round one of the competition with an introduction to our AES Executive Sponsors, Company and Values! Leading this year's presentation will be:
- Juan Ignacio Rubiolo, Executive VP and Chief Operating Officer
- Tish Mendoza, Executive VP and Chief HR Officer
Interconnection Panel
October 8
3:00 PM ET / 12:00 PM PT
Image
|
The Interconnection Panel will explore the fundamentals of grid interconnection and provide additional context on this year's challenge topic. Participants are encouraged to attend to learn from industry experts and ask questions related to the competition prompt. The session will be recorded.
Image
|
Innovation Panel
The Innovation Panel, which took place on September 21, highlighted AES people driving innovation across the energy sector. The session also provided an overview of AES and career opportunities throughout the company.
Interconnection Panel
October 8
3:00 PM ET / 12:00 PM PT
Image
|
The Interconnection Panel will explore the fundamentals of grid interconnection and provide additional context on this year's challenge topic. Participants are encouraged to attend to learn from industry experts and ask questions related to the competition prompt. The session will be recorded.
Image
|
Innovation Panel
The Innovation Panel, which took place on September 21, highlighted AES people driving innovation across the energy sector. The session also provided an overview of AES and career opportunities throughout the company.
Round 1 submissions
Due October 14, 11:59 PM PT
Image
|
By October 14, please submit a 5-minute video presentation explaining your solution. The objective of this exercise is to foster creativity and critical thinking skills. There are no wrong answers.
Submissions
- File naming conventions (TEAMNAME_Round_1)
Allowed filetypes (avi, mov, mp4, ogg, wav, webm, 256 MB limit.)
Round 1 submissions
Due October 14, 11:59 PM PT
Image
|
By October 14, please submit a 5-minute video presentation explaining your solution. The objective of this exercise is to foster creativity and critical thinking skills. There are no wrong answers.
Submissions
- File naming conventions (TEAMNAME_Round_1)
Allowed filetypes (avi, mov, mp4, ogg, wav, webm, 256 MB limit.)
Accelerating the future of energy, together.
The AES Corporation is a Fortune 500 energy company. With an outcome-focused approach, we partner with communities, utilities, and businesses to create energy solutions and integrate technologies that meet their rapidly growing need for reliable and clean power.
AES is the largest US-based global power company and a major source of energy innovation, changing the way the world creates, distributes, and stores electricity. With a diverse generation fleet, we are a top seller of clean energy to corporations and one of the largest energy providers to technology companies, powering the AI revolution and industries of the future.
