This is an offsite event that will take place at The Tech Interactive, 201 S. Market St., San Jose, CA 95113.

Where can you learn engineering design skills, discover how to solve real-world problems, practice working collaboratively and have a whole lot of fun at the same time?

Now in its 39th year, The Tech Challenge invites teams of students in Grades 4-12 to use the engineering design process to solve a real-world problem. Participants spend months collaborating and becoming deeply engaged in the challenge while documenting their progress and designs. The program culminates in an inspiring showcase in April where teams put their solutions to the test in front of judges.

The 2026 scenario:

The Bay Area is in need of low-cost housing! This year's challenge is to design a device that easily builds affordable housing for all people. How might you accurately lift housing modules into place? 

The challenge: Design, build, test, and demonstrate an innovative lifting device that transfers housing modules from one place to another at a construction site.

Register Here by March 16, 2026.
General registration is $150 per team, and Title I Schools are exempt from the registration fee.

Every registered team gets one (1) wooden module for testing at home or at school! These are the same type of modules that will be used on Showcase day.