A National Competition to Inspire America’s Youth
As America Celebrates our 250th Anniversary, it’s a time to reflect on the traditions that built our nation, communities, and cultures: A spirit of innovation, resilient competition, and a desire to come together and tackle the world’s greatest challenges.
In this era of automation, we need to build new institutions that shape how we understand and use technology, and how we prepare our students for the future.
The United States Governor’s Cup is an opportunity to reimagine education, forging deep relationships between schools and industry mentors. Drawing inspiration from our past, we look forward to the new challenges of our time.
Constitution Hall
February 20th - 21st
1776 D St NW, Washington, DC 20006, USA
About the Governor's Cup
The U.S. Governors Cup grows out of a multi-year effort that began in 2019 in the White House Office of American Innovation to modernize skills data and prototype new, workforce-aligned STEM models. That work evolved into an NSF research program that sought to broaden participation in hands-on STEM programs with FIRST® (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) as a foundation for experiential learning and skills development in underserved communities.
Five years on, a public-private consortium led by Experiential Robotics has delivered an open-source robotics platform at less than the cost of a textbook, with real-world traction:
New Hampshire became the first state to adopt it statewide across 5,500 classrooms, and many other states are developing exciting programs to serve their students: Idaho is building agriculture automation programs, Minnesota is leading in power electronics, and Ohio is pioneering advanced manufacturing.
As our nation prepares for a future where engineering and automation are essential skills, we must adopt new models that will better prepare our students for the modern workforce. To showcase what’s possible for America, we are hosting the first annual United States Governors Cup.
The Governor’s Cup will be the first event of its kind: a STEM-focused, state-vs.-state competition designed to showcase our student’s ingenuity and readiness for the future.
Partnering with Experiential Robotics, the Cup presents an exciting alternative to paper tests and standardized exams with live, applied robotics challenges with the FIRST® Tech Challenge.
The inaugural event will convene in Washington, D.C. in February 2026—during the National Governors Association Winter Meeting and America 250 festivities—uniting all 50 states in a high-visibility, March-Madness–style tournament over the course of two days. This event showcases design-thinking, technology, and teamwork as measures of student achievement and workforce readiness, and underscores a bipartisan, state-driven model for scaling hands-on STEM nationwide.
About Experiential Robotics
Experiential is a consortium of academic and industry partners working together to make FIRST available to every student in the country. Together we have built open source robotics kits and curriculum that make STEM programs more accessible than ever before. Through collaborations with state universities, community colleges, and school districts we’ve created a new engagement model that eliminates barriers to participation. To learn more about the consortium, our kits and resources visit our website.
About FIRST®
Kids have a natural curiosity, creativity, and desire to explore. At FIRST®, we understand the power of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) to inspire their innovative spirit and boost self-esteem.
Project-based, hands-on FIRST® programs introduce students to engineering and coding in engaging, welcoming, and creative learning environments in schools and local communities, where students work collaboratively to solve an annual, themed robotics challenge.
FIRST® programs are designed to help all young people develop collaborative problem-solving, leadership, and communications skills. Supported by a network of mentors, educators, volunteers, sponsors, parents, and alumni in over 100 countries, the FIRST® experience gives participants lasting inspiration and confidence to build a better future for themselves and their communities.
FIRST® LEGO® League (ages 5-14) introduces young people to STEM learning and discovery from an early stage. Through age-appropriate divisions, students grasp fundamental STEM concepts and put their knowledge into practice through competitive experiences. Along this path, they develop essential learning habits, build self-confidence, and strengthen their ability to work collaboratively.
FIRST® Tech Challenge (ages 12-18) encourages teams to design, build, program, and engage in thrilling robotics competitions. Guided by adult coaches and mentors, students develop STEM skills and practice engineering principles, while realizing the value of innovation and teamwork. Participants build classroom-scale robots and program them using a blocks-based (visual) or text-based coding language along with custom fabrication with 3D printing. With Gracious Professionalism®, students are encouraged to create team identities and be ambassadors for FIRST and STEM in their communities.
Combining the excitement of sport with the rigors of STEM, FIRST® Robotics Competition (ages 14-18) teams use sophisticated technology to build and program industrial-sized robots to play an action-packed, alliance-based game on a themed field. With professional mentors and sponsors, students learn engineering and problem-solving skills that they can apply to real-world situations today and in the future. Using Gracious Professionalism®, each team creates a team identity, raises funds to meet its goals, and works to promote STEM in their community.
