At the Baidu Star finals, thousands competed, decoding the talent “star-making factory” of the AI era… 百度之星決賽現場，上千人角逐，解碼AI時代的人才“造星工廠”…

On the evening of December 7th in Beijing, the finals of the 21st Baidu Star Programming Contest came to a close. Known as the “Oscars” of the programming world, the event attracted over a thousand contestants who tackled 11 challenging algorithm problems within five hours. Ultimately, 16-year-old Wang Maohua from Yantai Qinghua Middle School claimed the overall championship.

Sharing his thoughts, he said, “As long as you believe in miracles, you yourself are a miracle.” These words from the young champion not only reflect his personal insight but also capture the core spirit of the 21-year-old Baidu Star competition: consistently conveying to the younger generation the fervent belief that “technology creates miracles.”

This year’s finals were a gathering of prodigies, boasting a stellar lineup. Among the contestants, those born after 2010 accounted for over 30%, with the youngest being just 12 years old. Even more eye-catching was the presence of several members from national teams of the International Olympiad in Informatics, including Cheng Siyuan from Tsinghua University, Shen Jiyu from Peking University, and Fan Sizhe from Hailiang Senior High School. Their competition on the same stage was dubbed by the audience as a “clash of the titans.”

However, an even more astonishing trend emerged: among the top ten winners, nine were middle school students, with only one university student, highlighting the formidable momentum of the “new wave.” Fourteen-year-old Zhang Xichen, an eighth-grader from Mengzi, Yunnan, made it to the finals in her first attempt, demonstrating the competition’s expanding reach into broader regions.

Two unique symbols on the competition floor embodied the dreams of youth and technology. (1) The “progress balloons” that changed color with each solved problem, visually intensifying the competitive atmosphere. (2) The iconic Baidu Star “iron medal.” For many contestants, this specially crafted medal holds extraordinary significance, with “aiming for the iron medal” being a common goal. During the awards ceremony, the scene of over a hundred contestants simultaneously tapping their iron medals with small hammers was filled with ritualistic meaning. The crisp sound seemed like a collective coronation of perseverance and passion.

Behind this grand event lies Baidu’s 21-year commitment and a clear talent strategy. Since its inception in 2005, the Baidu Star contest has attracted over 350,000 participants from 1,800 institutions nationwide and was included in the Ministry of Education’s recognized “National Competitions” catalog in 2023. Its significance has long transcended the competition itself, becoming a vital bridge connecting education, industry, and the future.

The contest has produced industry leaders in AI such as Lou Tiancheng from Pony.ai and Tang Wenbin from Megvii, forming a growth path from “campus stars” to “industry stars.” Deng Kaiwei, a teacher from Mengzi Middle School in Yunnan who led a team to the competition, remarked emotionally, “Whether they win awards or not, this will become a valuable experience on the children’s life journey.” This reflects the deep-seated value of the contest’s inclusivity and inspiration.

Recently, Baidu founder Robin Li called for the industry to “internalize AI capabilities,” and Baidu Star is one of the most concrete embodiments of this vision. It is not only a key component of Baidu’s “10 Million AI Talent Program,” having helped cultivate nearly 6 million AI talents cumulatively, but also demonstrates the long-term philosophy of a technology company.

Following the finals, Baidu immediately opened campus recruitment channels and product seminars for the contestants, achieving seamless transition from the competition arena to the workplace. As the wave of AI technology sweeps across the globe, such an ecosystem that continuously discovers and nurtures local innovative talent undoubtedly reserves the most crucial engine for the industry’s future.

Twenty-one years, 350,000 participants, and a list of names that have transformed the industry. When the young champion lifts the trophy, he raises not only personal honor but also the enduring hope of China’s AI talent. The Baidu Star “star-making factory” continues, at its own pace and with its conviction, quietly igniting future stars and accumulating cutting-edge intellectual capital for the nation’s high-quality development.

百度之星決賽現場，上千人角逐，解碼AI時代的人才“造星工廠”…

12月7日晚，北京，第21屆百度之星程序設計大賽決賽落幕。被稱為編程界“奧斯卡”的這場賽事，吸引了超千名選手在五小時內挑戰11道高難度算法題，最終，來自煙台青華中學的16歲少年王茂驊斬獲總冠軍。

他在分享心得時說：“只要你相信奇迹，那麼你本身就是奇迹。”而這句出自少年之口的話，不僅是他個人的感悟，也道出了百度之星賽事舉辦21年來的內核：持續向年輕一代傳遞“技術創造奇迹”的熾熱信念。

本屆決賽堪稱“天才雲集”，陣容豪華。參賽選手中，“10后” 佔比超過30%，最小的僅12歲。更引人注目的是多位國際信息學奧林匹克競賽國家隊成員的現身，包括清華大學的程思元、北京大學的沈吉澦和海亮高級中學的范斯喆，他們的同台被觀眾稱為“神仙打架”。

然而，更令人驚嘆的趨勢是，在獲獎前十名的選手中，中學生佔據了九席，大學生僅有一人，“後浪”勢頭之強勁可見一斑。來自雲南蒙自的14歲初二學生張熙晨首次參賽便闖入決賽，她的出現也印證了這項賽事的影響正深入至更廣闊的地區。

賽場上有兩個獨特的符號承載着青春與技術夢想。（一）隨解題進度而變換顏色的“進度氣球”，直觀渲染着比賽的激烈；（二）百度之星標誌性的“鐵牌”獎。對許多選手而言，這塊特製獎牌的意義非凡，“目標就是拿鐵牌”是許多人的心聲。頒獎典禮上，百餘名選手齊舉鐵鎚敲擊鐵牌的場面，充滿儀式感，那清脆的聲響彷彿是對堅持與熱愛的一次集體加冕。

這場盛宴背後，是百度長達21年的堅持與一套清晰的人才戰略。自2005年創辦以來，百度之星累計參賽人數已突破35萬人，覆蓋全國1800所院校，並於2023年入選教育部認可的“國賽”目錄。它的意義早已超越競賽本身，成為連接教育、產業與未來的重要橋樑。

從這項賽事中，走出了如小馬智行樓天城、曠視唐文斌等一批AI行業的領軍人物，形成了從“校園之星”到“產業之星”的成長鏈路。帶隊參賽的雲南蒙自中學老師鄧凱維感慨道：“無論得獎與否，這都將成為孩子們人生道路上寶貴的歷練。”這正體現了賽事普惠和激勵的深層價值。

百度創始人李彥宏近期提出“內化AI能力”的行業呼籲，而百度之星正是這一理念最具體的實踐之一。它不僅是百度“1000萬AI人才計劃”中的關鍵環節，累計助力培養近600萬AI人才，更展現了一家技術公司的長期主義。

決賽后，百度即向選手們開放了校招通道與產品講座，實現了從賽場到職場的無縫對接。在AI技術浪潮席捲全球的當下，這種持續挖掘和培養本土創新血液的生態建設，無疑是為行業的未來儲備最關鍵的引擎。

21年了，35萬人，一批改變行業的名字。當年輕的冠軍舉起獎盃，他舉起的不僅是個人的榮譽，更是中國AI人才生生不息的希望。百度之星這座“造星工廠”，仍在以它的節奏與信念，默默點亮未來之星，為國家的高質量發展積蓄最前沿的智力資本。