Date line, Dallas, Texas: Teenagers and young adults from across the globe are currently competing to be crowned the world’s best users of Microsoft Office. Seriously.
The Microsoft Office Specialist World Championships are a three-day jamboree for people who are obsessed with Word, PowerPoint and Excel. The young competitors are aged between 13 and 22 and are battling it out to be named the most dedicated and skilled.
And get this: The contest has been going for 14 years.
To make the ‘live’ finals, contestants had to beat out 700,000 others who also took Microsoft Specialist Exams, which test your skills across the Office suite. They then had to go to regional championships to earn their spot in the final.
The 💜 of EU tech
The latest rumblings from the EU tech scene, a story from our wise ol' founder Boris, and some questionable AI art. It's free, every week, in your inbox. Sign up now!
This year’s competition ends today and is being livestreamed here between 9am and 12.30pm CDT.
➤ Microsoft Office Specialist World Championships [via Atlas Obscura]
Get the TNW newsletter
Get the most important tech news in your inbox each week.