UND takes big ‘byte’ of regional coding competition

UND Association for Computing Machinery takes first and third place, crushing the coding competition

What happens when you put UND’s best programmers in a room with a ticking clock, a coding challenge, and a whole lot of determination?

Victory.

UND’s Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), one of the 30+ STEM student organizations within the College of Engineering & Mines’, took first and third place at Byte-le Royale, a 12-hour programming competition hosted by North Dakota State University.

Think of Byte-le Royale like an esports tournament, but instead of controlling the characters, you build the intelligence behind them. Teams of up to three students code a party of bots from scratch to compete in a video game showdown. The best bot wins. Simple, right?

Well, not when you only have 12 hours to make it happen!

Since 2018, this event has pushed college programmers to the limit, testing their problem-solving skills, strategic thinking and, just maybe, caffeine tolerance.

Meet the code conquerors

Rolling out to Fargo with two competing teams, both placed in the competition. With nothing but a Python API and their wits, UND’s teams coded their way to the top.

The first-place champions included Kyle Holter Vogel, Joseph Melancon and Jonah Stroup.

Third-place champions consisted of Jason Dexter, Nicholas Lobao and Johnny Caulder.

UND’s ultimate tech social club

UND’s ACM organization isn’t just about competitions (though, let’s be honest, winning is fun). It’s the university’s ultimate tech social club—a place where students come together to build cool things, level up their coding skills and share their passion for technology.

What does ACM do?

• Game nights (because even programmers need a break)
• Workshops & tutorials (learning cool new skills)
• Hackathons & competitions (for those who thrive under pressure)
• Networking & career opportunities (because tech jobs don’t land themselves)

As a recognized UND student organization since 1989 and an affiliate of the National Association for Computing Machinery, ACM is where UND’s brightest tech minds come together to innovate, create and crush coding challenges.

If you’re a student who loves coding, gaming, or problem-solving, why not join them? You might just be part of the next big win. Meetings are held on Mondays at 5 p.m. in Upson II Room 371, and you can find more ways to connect on their Linktree.

Written by Paige Prekker  //  UND College of Engineering & Mines