Turan University team wins 2nd place at the national «IT-Innovation 2026» project competition

Students of the Higher School of Information Technology at Turan University successfully participated in the «IT-Innovation 2026» competition of innovative projects, demonstrating a high level of academic training and the development of modern digital solutions.

The «IT-Innovation 2026» competition, organized by the Egyptian University of Islamic Culture «Nur-Mubarak» and dedicated to the university’s 25th anniversary, aimed to identify and support talented students in the field of information technology, as well as to promote innovative projects in artificial intelligence, web, and mobile development.

Two teams from Turan University, composed of 3rd- and 4th-year students of the educational program 6B06101 – Information Systems took part in the competition.

The team consisting of Rufina Abliakimovna Idrissova, Timofey Konstantinovich Shmarin, and Andrey Evgenievich Savgira presented the project «Intelligent Conversational Agent for Online Student Consultations (TuranUniBot)» – a modern AI-based solution designed to automate interaction between students and faculty. The system utilizes natural language processing technologies and large language models, providing real-time intelligent user support. The project is distinguished by a high degree of innovation, a hybrid architecture (generative AI combined with deterministic logic), and strong practical relevance, as the system has already been implemented in the educational process and contributes to improving the efficiency of the learning environment.

Another team, consisting of Murager Muraschanuly Kurmanbay, Mukharam Rafaelevich Gaitinov, and Zhan Olzhasuly Boribaev, presented the project «BookSence – a web platform for book analysis and recommendations». Unlike traditional systems based on ratings, this platform analyzes user behavioral signals (likes, completion rates, additions to reading lists), enabling a more objective evaluation of the quality and popularity of literary works. The project integrates natural language processing methods (TF-IDF, semantic embeddings), machine learning techniques (K-Means clustering, LightGBM model), and analytical visualization to deliver intelligent search, recommendations, and prediction of book success.

Following the results of the competition, the project defense of which took place on April 10, 2026, the team of Rufina Idrisova, Timofey Shmarin, and Andrey Savgir was awarded the honorable 2nd place, while the team of Murager Kurmanbay, Mukharam Gaitinov, and Zhan Boribaev received a letter of appreciation for their active participation.

The academic supervisor of both teams is Yekaterina Romanovna Kim – Candidate of Technical Sciences, Associate Professor at the Higher School of Information Technology, Turan University.

The students’ achievement confirms the high level of training at Turan University in the field of artificial intelligence and digital solution development, and demonstrates the practical relevance of the implemented projects.

We congratulate the teams and their academic supervisor on this outstanding result and wish them continued success in their academic and project activities!