I submitted the following comment to the official website of the “U-22 Programming Contest 2018,” for which I served as a judge.

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A record-high number of entries.
Once again this year, I was greatly inspired by the many diverse and compelling entries and by meeting their creators.
What the award winners had in common was a high level of “passion.”
Why did they want to create this? How could it be made more convenient? How could it be improved to captivate a wider audience?
I was deeply moved by the entries, which were created through a constant back-and-forth between passionate enthusiasm and cool-headed thinking, repeated through trial and error.
A notable feature of this year’s contest was that two elementary school students won the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Award.
Everyone now has the means to bring their ideas to life.
That is precisely why we are entering an era where the substance of “what to create” is increasingly important.
Please continue to cherish your “passion” as you create in the future.

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The U-22 Programming Contest 2018 held its final round on Sunday, October 21,
and the winners were announced. We have now published reports covering the overview and evaluation criteria of the winning entries, as well as details on the final judging session, the awards ceremony, and the company tours offered as prizes for the winners.

　Overviews and Evaluation Criteria for Each Award-Winning Entry
　https://u22procon.com/report/

　Scenes from the U-22 Programming Contest 2018 Final Judging Session
　https://u22procon.com/report/final.html

　Comments from the Judging Panel
　https://u22procon.com/report/committee.html

　Comments from the Winners
　https://u22procon.com/report/comment.html
　
　Company Tour Footage
　https://u22procon.com/report/companytour.html

　Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry Awards Ceremony
　https://u22procon.com/report/ceremony.html