The 16th Students Research Conference on Applied Computing (SRC 2025), organized by the College of Technological Innovation and hosted at Zayed University, aims to foster research collaboration across educational institutions in the Arab world and beyond. In alignment with the UAE Vision 2031 and its commitment to a forward-looking, knowledge-based economy, Zayed University remains dedicated to empowering youth through research, innovation, and academic excellence. The SRC continues to play a pivotal role in fostering a culture of scientific inquiry, critical thinking, and problem-solving among students. By embedding research into the academic experience, the conference cultivates lifelong learning, strengthens career readiness, and encourages an entrepreneurial mindset in emerging scholars. This year’s the conference adopted the theme “AI Innovation for a Better Tomorrow.”

This version of the conference marks a milestone in SRC’s history in terms of scale and scholarly impact. SRC 2025 has accepted 111 abstracts for poster and demo presentations, 30 IEEE full conference research papers, and 20 short papers, representing 653 authors. These submissions come primarily from students and their faculty advisors across more than 25 educational institutions spanning over 12 countries, including Egypt, France, India, KSA, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Poland, UK, USA, and the UAE. Students will present their work through live demos, lightning talks, and poster sessions, reflecting the multidisciplinary nature and broad scope of emerging technologies. Another exciting development is the addition of two dedicated workshop tracks for full papers. Out of 46 submissions, 22 papers were accepted. These, along with the main conference full papers, bring the total to 52 full papers, which will be published in IEEE Xplore and indexed by Scopus, marking a significant step in the conference’s academic impact. SRC 2025 featured three submission types: Full Papers (peer-reviewed and presented in oral sessions), Short Papers (peer-reviewed and presented in poster or lightning-talk formats), Abstracts (peer-screened and presented in poster sessions).

We extend our sincere thanks to all students who submitted their work and chose SRC 2025 as the venue to share their research achievements. We also thank their faculty mentors for their guidance and support, which have been essential to the development of high-quality research. Special thanks go to the Steering Committee and Organizing Committee for their tireless dedication, as well as to all reviewers, session chairs, and volunteers who made this conference possible. We hope that your participation in SRC 2025 is intellectually enriching and that it inspires continued inquiry, collaboration, and innovation. Enjoy the conference, and we look forward to the meaningful discussions and discoveries that will unfold during this exciting event.