In Manhattan some city middle school children got together Saturday to show off some of their skills at the Harlem Robotics Competition.

KIPP Infinity Middle School hosted the day -ong tournament for district and charter schools and the Eagle Academy for Young Men. Teams went head to-head to see whose robot came out on top.

The competition stems back to 2018. That's when KIPP NYC was awarded a $50,000 grant to launch 18 robotics teams across their K-8 schools to help address a STEM equity gap.

One organizer says the event has an even greater mission. "The ultimate goal is for the kids to feel empowered to be the next generation of creators, thinkers and innovators."

Thanks to the success of the program, FIRST awarded KIPP an additional $25,000 for this school year to further expand robotics across New York.