Chinese-American Middle School Students Crowned National Champion at VEX Robotics U.S. Open

Omaha, IA, April 5 – The 2025 VEX Robotics U.S. Open concluded triumphantly this week in Omaha. Team 956A SuperDraco, composed of five Chinese-American middle schoolers from the National Youth Innovation Foundation, crowned the Robot Skills National Champion title with a record-breaking 920 points—setting new VEX IQ Robotics Skills records for both the U.S. and North America. The team, featuring Atticus Guo, Xingzhuo He, Winnie Luo, Laura Chen, and Wantao Li, carried forward their winning momentum from March’s VEX IQ California State Championship, showcasing near-flawless teamwork and technical innovation at the national stage. This marks 12-year-old Atticus Guo’s third consecutive year leading a team to victory at the Robotics U.S. Open.

As the team’s core members, Atticus Guo and Xingzhuo He spearheaded critical phases of robot design, build, and programming, leveraging their extensive experience and steady on-site performance. Their innovative mechanical optimization solutions and precision-driven autonomous programming algorithms became the team’s “secret weapon” for consistent success.

Notably, Atticus Guo, Winnie Luo, and Laura Chen co-founded the nonprofit National Youth Innovation Foundation in early 2024. The organization’s mission is to provide equitable STEM learning opportunities for youth regardless of socioeconomic background, gender, race, or other factors. This philosophy fuels their commitment to social impact, particularly in supporting children with special needs such as autism. Partnering with the Franklin Foundation, they established robotics clubs for autistic children, using robotics as a bridge to foster emotional connections.

Through these interactions, the team members cultivate empathy and social responsibility, finding joy in helping autistic children overcome challenges in robotics education.