On April 25, 2026, the 5th Global Digital Skills Championship (GDSC2026) officially kicked off at the Hong Kong Institute of Information Technology (HKIIT) in Hong Kong, China. Since its launch in 2020, GDSC has grown steadily through five sessions into an annual flagship event renowned among global digital skills talents. With the theme ”Connecting the World through Skills, Empowering the Future with Innovation”, this championship gathers young elites from across the globe to embrace this five-year-long rendezvous of skills.
As a premier event on a par with WorldSkills, the Global Digital Skills Championship (GDSC) enjoys an outstanding reputation in the industry. If WorldSkills is regarded as the “Olympics of skills”, then GDSC stands as the “World Cup” in the field of digital skills.
This grand final has attracted top competitors and expert teams from ten countries and regions, including China, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Finland, South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Hong Kong, China.These international participants are all highly accomplished talents who have gone through rigorous multi-level national selections, ultimately advancing to the GDSC 2026 Grand Final as national representatives.
This summit event held in Hong Kong serves not only as an important prelude to the 48th WorldSkills Competition to be held in Shanghai this September, but also as a world-class elite competition featuring professional excellence and humanistic warmth, showcasing the highest competitive standard of digital skills talents from all participating countries and regions.
The schedule of GDSC2026 is intensive and well-organized, fully demonstrating the professionalism of an international competition:
| April 23 | Gathering in Hong Kong | Delegations from 10 countries and regions arrived in Hong Kong one after another, embarking on a journey of technical exchange. |
| April 24 | Final Preparations | Competitors conducted thorough equipment debugging and venue adaptation. The welcome dinner held that evening allowed young talents from all nations to share skills and build friendships in a relaxed atmosphere. |
| April 25–26 | Ultimate Competition | The official competition commenced. Participants competed with full dedication while judges officiated rigorously, creating an intense yet well-ordered arena atmosphere. |
| April 27 | Moment of Glory | A grand award ceremony was held to witness the birth of the champions. |
| April 28 | Return with Honours | All participants departed for their home countries, bringing with them valuable practical experience and cross-border friendships. |
01、Moment of Glory – Grand Award Ceremony
On April 27, the GDSC2026 Award Ceremony was grandly held at the competition venue, marking a perfect conclusion to this international skills event.
- At the ceremony, Dr. Eric Liu, Deputy Executive Director of VTC, delivered a speech. He congratulated the event’s success, praised the contestants’ professionalism and sportsmanship, and encouraged young talents to learn and grow through competition and excel in the global digital sector.
- Subsequently, David, the expert representative from Canada, took the stage to speak. He shared his judging experience of the event, spoke highly of the contestants’ creativity and capability, and looked forward to meeting everyone again on higher-level international skills platforms in the future.
- Finally, Ye Weizhong, President of IADGE, reviewed GDSC’s development since its founding in 2020. Five sessions have made it an important bridge for global young digital professionals. He also looked forward to GDSC building a higher-standard international platform to help more skilled talents embrace the world.
Amid warm applause, guests presented awards to the winning contestants in turn, and issued honorary certificates to all experts of the event in recognition of their outstanding contributions to competition judging, technical support and international exchanges.
The official results of the competition have been announced: The Gold Medal was won by Tang Qixuan from China, the Silver Medal by Giovanna Cândido da Silva from Brazil, and the Bronze Medal by Lam Kar Chun from Malaysia.
02、WorldSkills Standard Project: Taking SEDAP as the backdrop, inheriting the WorldSkills spirit
The competition tasks are designed based on the original game SEDAP: Feast of Hunters & Chefs. All challenge projects are created around the game’s worldview, characters and scenarios, closely aligning with real industry practice. Notably, the creator of SEDAP is also a former WorldSkills competitor. Setting an inspiring example for young participants, he endows this event with deeper heritage significance.
03、17-Hour Ultimate Challenge: The Intense Contest of Full-stack Digital Productivity
Amid the wave of the digital economy, the gaming industry has become an integrated hub of cutting-edge technologies such as computer graphics, AI, cloud rendering and human-computer interaction. GDSC2026 is not only a test of contestants’ endurance, but also an ultimate contest of creativity and logical thinking.
Competitors are required to complete a total of 17 hours of high-intensity competition within 2 days, covering three core modules throughout the entire lifecycle of game development:
| A | Concept Art | Build a grand worldview, and outline boundless imagination with creativity. |
| B | 3D Modeling | Digital Visualization: Transforming artistic inspiration into refined assets. |
| C | Character Interaction | Design interactive logic, endow digital life with vivid expressiveness. |
This full-process assessment aims to guide contestants to transform from specialized technicians to versatile creators, precisely meeting the global digital industry’s demand for all-round talents.
04、Professional Judging Support: Fair, Impartial and Rigorous Scoring
The expert panel of this competition strictly follows WorldSkills scoring criteria to evaluate contestants’ works across multiple dimensions, including creative conception, technical implementation, artistic presentation, completeness and standardization. This ensures all results are authentic and credible, every ranking well-deserved, and upholds the credibility of the event with professional rigor.
05、Two Event Highlights: Art inspires; Gifts warm hearts
On the first day of the competition, a thoughtfully themed task wowed all participants: *Capture a Moment of Each Other*. Breaking language barriers, contestants sketched their neighbouring peers, capturing their expressions and temperament to integrate into character design.
“This is the most heartwarming form of competition I have ever seen,” commented an on-site judge.
Stroke by stroke, the challenge tests not only contestants’ observation and artistic attainment, but also softens the stark competitiveness of the arena, turning it into a warm hub of cultural integration. Young people bond through skills, vividly interpreting the profound essence of **Skills Connect the World**.
As a time-honored tradition of GDSC, the **gift exchange** session held on April 27 ahead of the competition pushed the atmosphere to a heartwarming climax.
– Maple leaf badges from Australia, hand-woven bracelets from Brazil, custom blessing pouches from Malaysia, Tiger Balm ointment from Singapore…
– The panda-themed creative fans, 3D-printed *Sun Wukong* figures and a variety of panda cultural and creative souvenirs brought by the Chinese team became the highlight of the event.
These gifts with distinctive regional characteristics embody young people’s passion for skills and respect for cultures from all around the world.
06、Youth Tribute: Set Sail from Hong Kong, Chase Dreams for Shanghai WorldSkills
On the eve of China’s May Fourth Youth Day, these young global skills talents dedicated themselves to 17 hours of focused striving, living up to the pledge that dedication is the brightest hallmark of youth. Striving for perfection and immersing themselves in creation, they prove with actions: Skills enlighten life, and creativity shapes the future.
GDSC2026 serves not only as a key prelude to the “WorldSkills Olympics”, but also as an accelerator for the growth of young skilled talents worldwide. On the professional stage of HKIIT, participants hone their capabilities through competition, broaden their global vision, and fully prepare to strive for medals at the 48th WorldSkills Competition to be held in Shanghai this September.
Light of Skills Illuminates Youth, Digital Craftsmanship Chases Dreams for Shanghai. Brimming with passion, these young talents set off from Hong Kong. Bridging the world with skills and soaring with creativity, they forge ahead bravely toward greater global stages.
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