Le Ky Nam, an 8th grade student at Newton Secondary - High School in Hanoi, was one of three members of the Vietnamese team to win a medal at IAIO 2026 on 27/2.
"I am happy, but also a little regretful because I just missed the silver medal," Nam said.
This year's IAIO took place from 23-27/2 in Ljubljana, Slovenia, bringing together 95 contestants from 24 countries and territories. This marked Vietnam's first participation in the IAIO. All team members, except Nam, were high school students.
The competition consisted of two parts: a theory section with eight questions and a practical section requiring contestants to build an artificial intelligence model to solve a real-world problem related to vaccine development. Each section lasted five hours.
According to Nam, the exam was challenging. He made sure to read all the questions carefully before tackling them from easiest to hardest. In the theory section, due to time constraints, he skipped two questions on position encoding and kernel methods. He also could not fully present the A* pathfinding algorithm for question 8, which involves finding the shortest path in a graph, despite knowing how to prove it.
For the practical exam, Nam began by designing a basic model. He then incorporated techniques such as feature augmentation, appropriate feature selection, and parameter tuning to enhance the results. His extensive practice with similar problems allowed him to complete this section quickly.
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Le Ky Nam. Photo: Family provided |
Nam recounted his passion for programming began in 2nd grade, where he self-taught using Scratch, a programming software for children.
"My mother bought me programming books to read, and I found it interesting, so I learned more," the student shared. In 3rd grade, Nam started participating in youth informatics competitions and seriously pursued the subject.
One year later, he won first prize at the National Youth Informatics Competition. In 5th grade, Nam earned a gold medal in the non-specialized category, followed by another gold in the specialized category in 6th grade at the Central - Central Highlands Informatics Olympiad, a competition typically for high school students.
Additionally, Nam is a gold medalist in Mathematics at the International Mathematics and Science Olympiad (IMSO) 2024 and achieved first prize in an advanced informatics competition for Hanoi city in 7th grade.
In early 2025, after completing a basic AI course, Nam shifted his focus to artificial intelligence, moving away from competitive programming. He now dedicates equal effort to three areas: machine learning, computer vision, and natural language processing.
During the critical preparation phase for IAIO 2026, which coincided with the Lunar New Year, Nam and his teammates received continuous, high-intensity training from their teachers, covering extensive and complex knowledge. Despite the demanding schedule, he stated he did not feel pressured, maintaining a comfortable mindset to achieve his best performance.
The student's learning approach involves always attempting to find solutions independently before seeking assistance. When encountering new terms, he researches online resources or uses AI tools to understand the concepts. For the theory section, Nam asks AI to suggest additional practice questions. In the practical section, he focuses on developing his skills to write programs and build models independently, without relying heavily on support tools.
"For difficult problems, I often discuss them with my father to find solutions," Nam said.
According to Nam, a good memory and sharp thinking are crucial for excelling in informatics. Outside of academics, he enjoys rollerblading at the park, playing chess, practicing piano, or reading science fiction books for relaxation.
Ms. Nguyen Thuy Ha, Nam's 8I0 homeroom teacher at Newton School, praised her student's resilience, self-study spirit, and high discipline.
"He displays good logical thinking, independent research ability, and a special passion for artificial intelligence," she commented.
Nam stated his intention to continue honing his knowledge to participate in upcoming domestic and international informatics competitions, especially those focused on AI.
Huyen Trang
