Can you train an automatic speech recognition (ASR) model that truly understands Caribbean voices?

The Caribbean Voices AI Hackathon is hosted on Zindi by the Artificial Intelligence Innovation Centre of the University of the West Indies, St Augustine, and invites data scientists, AI builders, and machine learning engineers from across the region to push the frontier of speech technology for Caribbean accents.

You'll work with a curated dataset of approximately 28,000 thirty-second audio clips from BBC Caribbean, each manually transcribed. Your goal: build or fine-tune an ASR model that best predicts the transcribed text from the audio clips, then imagine how that model could power high-impact applications across the Caribbean.

High-performing ASR models for Caribbean accents can unlock:

• Inclusive education and learning support
• Voice-driven financial and GovTech services
• Tools for marginalized or low-literacy communities
• Accessibility, captioning, and cultural preservation

Top participants will not only compete on the leaderboard but also pitch how their ASR models can drive social and economic inclusion across the region.

The hackathon runs in two phases, combining rigorous modelling with creative innovation:

• Phase 1 — Modelling Round
  Build an ASR model that can accurately transcribe Caribbean audio clips. Submissions are evaluated using Word Error Rate (WER) on held-out test data.
• Phase 2 — Innovation Round
  The top 10 teams from Phase 1 are invited to submit a 3-minute pitch showcasing an impactful application of their ASR model for the Caribbean.

Shortlisted teams will pitch live (virtually or in-person) at the official launch of the AI Innovation Centre in Trinidad.

Example areas your Phase 2 pitch might address:

• Agriculture — voice tools for farmers, local knowledge platforms
• Financial inclusion — voice-enabled banking and support
• Social inclusion & culture — media, storytelling, preservation
• Accessibility — captioning, assistive tools, inclusive services
• GovTech — voice-activated public services over phone or web

Pitches are limited to 3 minutes, must be in English, and can optionally include a demo or prototype.

The challenge is evaluated in two parts:

• Phase 1 — Word Error Rate (WER)
  Your model's transcriptions are compared to human transcriptions with WER as the primary metric.
• Phase 2 — Pitch & Notebook Review
  Shortlisted pitches are evaluated by a panel of judges using a defined rubric.

Submission format for Phase 1 typically includes:

• ID — the unique clip identifier
• Transcription — your model's predicted transcript

Phase 2 evaluation rubric:

• Innovation (40%) — originality and creativity
• Impact (40%) — potential for social/economic inclusion
• Feasibility (20%) — how practical the solution is

The final ranking combines your Phase 1 performance and Phase 2 pitch outcome, as determined by the judging panel.

The total prize pool is USD $7,500, split across the two phases:

• Phase 1

• 1st place: $2,500
• 2nd place: $1,500
• 3rd place: $1,000

• Phase 2

• Winning pitch: $2,500 and Linux Courses

Winners must provide valid proof of residence for prize payments, as specified by Zindi's rules.

In addition to cash prizes, there are 5,000 Zindi points allocated to this challenge, contributing to your overall standing on the platform.

Prize payments are handled by AIIC in USD (or the challenge currency) via bank transfer, PayPal (for smaller amounts), or similar services.

This competition is open only to participants living in eligible Caribbean countries, with valid proof of address or nationality.

Eligible locations include, among others:

• Anguilla
• Antigua and Barbuda
• Bahamas
• Barbados
• Belize
• Bermuda
• British Virgin Islands
• Cayman Islands
• Curaçao
• Dominica
• Grenada
• Guyana
• Jamaica
• Montserrat
• Saint Kitts and Nevis
• Saint Lucia
• Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
• Suriname
• Trinidad and Tobago
• Turks and Caicos Islands

At the prize-award stage, winners will be expected to present proof of residence or nationality for verification, in line with Zindi's standard processes.

If you reside outside this list, you are welcome to learn from the challenge but may not be eligible for prizes.

The standard Zindi rules apply, however this competition includes an application development phase. Highlights include:

• Languages & tools: Only open-source languages and tools may be used to build your models.
• Data: You may only use the datasets provided for this challenge, plus openly available pretrained models.
• Team size: Maximum team size of 4 participants.
• Submissions: Up to 10 submissions per day, with an overall cap (e.g. 50 total) as specified on Zindi.
• Leaderboards: Public + private split; the private leaderboard decides final rankings at challenge close.

Zindi or the AIIC may request your code (especially if you are in the top 10). Code must:

• Run end-to-end and reproduce your leaderboard score.
• Use only tools that are publicly available to everyone.
• Not rely on paid or closed-source components that others cannot access.

Multiple accounts, sharing of private code outside your team, and other forms of cheating can lead to disqualification or bans, as per Zindi's full rules.

Always refer to the official Zindi Caribbean Voices AI Hackathon page for complete, up-to-date rules and terms.