12 AI Summer Programs for Middle School Students
If you are a middle school student interested in artificial intelligence, an AI summer program can help you build foundational knowledge in a rapidly growing field. Many programs introduce concepts such as machine learning, data analysis, programming, neural networks, and AI ethics through structured lessons and project-based activities. These experiences can help you understand how AI systems are designed and used while developing computational and problem-solving skills.
What are the benefits of an AI summer program?
AI summer programs introduce students to concepts that are rarely covered in depth during middle school. Depending on the program, you may learn programming, explore machine learning models, analyze data, study AI ethics, or investigate how artificial intelligence is applied in fields such as healthcare, transportation, education, and robotics. These experiences can help you build computational thinking skills, deepen your understanding of AI technologies, and identify areas you may want to explore further in high school.
What are the benefits of an AI program?
If you’re looking for online programs, check out our blog here.
1. Veritas AI's AI Trailblazers
Location: Virtual
Cost: Varies by program (financial aid available)
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective
Dates: Several cohorts year-round
Application Deadline: Varies by cohort. You can apply to the program here.
Eligibility: Middle school students
The AI Trailblazers program by Veritas AI is a virtual program that teaches middle school students the fundamentals of artificial intelligence and machine learning. Over 25 hours, you will learn the basics of Python as well as topics like data analysis, regression, image classification, neural networks, and AI ethics. Students learn through lectures and group sessions with a 5:1 student-to-mentor ratio. Previous student projects have included building a machine-learning model to classify music genres and developing a machine-learning algorithm to generate a custom list of educational resources based on specified criteria.
2.Science of Smart Cities (SoSC)
Location: Andries Hudde Magnet School of STEAM, Brooklyn, NY
Cost/Stipend: None
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Not specified
Dates: July 6 – 31
Application Deadline: May 15
Eligibility: 6th and 7th graders from NYC
Science of Smart Cities (SoSC) is a summer program that enables middle school students to explore how technology can be used to design more efficient and sustainable urban environments. You'll start by learning the basics of electronics and circuitry, then apply those concepts to hands-on engineering activities. As you go further, you'll learn coding and microcontroller programming, and use them to control sensors and other hardware. Working in teams, you’ll combine hardware, programming, and data from sensors to design solutions for real-world city challenges. The program ends with presentations in which you demonstrate a technology-based solution to a real-world city problem.
3. Lumiere's Junior Explorer Program
Location: Virtual
Cost: Varies by program (financial aid available)
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective
Dates: Several cohorts year-round
Application Deadline: Varies by cohort
Eligibility: Middle school students
The Junior Explorer Program gives you the opportunity to dive into artificial intelligence through a research-focused experience. You'll start by exploring possible research questions and learning how scholars study complex topics. As the program progresses, you'll narrow your focus to building an independent research or analysis project. Mentors guide you through organizing ideas, evaluating sources, and developing a clear argument or project outcome. By the end of the program, you’ll have produced a substantial final project such as a research paper, case study, or other structured investigation related to your chosen topic.
4. Sounds of New York City (SONYC)
Location: Andries Hudde Magnet School of STEAM, Brooklyn, NY
Cost/Stipend: None
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Not specified
Dates: July 6 – 31
Application Deadline: May 15
Eligibility: 6th to 7th graders who live in NYC
Sounds of New York City (SONYC) is an AI summer program where middle school students investigate the science of sound and its impact on urban environments. You study how sound waves work and examine how noise pollution can affect public health and daily life in cities. The program combines electronics and coding as you build devices that can produce or monitor sound in real-world settings. You also collect and analyze audio samples from your surroundings to understand patterns in urban noise. The program concludes with a project in which you design and present a smart-city technology solution to measure or reduce noise pollution.
5. Duke Pre-College: Technology and AI
Location: Duke University, Durham, NC
Stipend: $6,050 (residential), $3,950 (commuter); scholarships are available
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Not specified
Dates: July 13 – 24
Application Deadline: Rolling
Eligibility: 6th - 8th graders (11+) who have completed at least one year of middle school
Technology and AI is an AI summer program that introduces middle school students to the foundations of artificial intelligence and emerging technologies. You'll explore how algorithms work and examine common ways in which AI systems are used in everyday tools and services. Along the way, you'll think about ethical questions related to automation, data use, and decision-making systems. Throughout the program, you'll look at real-world examples of AI applications and discuss their potential benefits and limitations. The experience concludes with a project in which you design and explain an AI-based solution to a practical problem, including how the technology works and the ethical considerations.
6. Northwestern CTD Academic Summer Camps: Machine Learning: Algorithms & Data Science
Location: Virtual
Cost: $860 (financial aid available)
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Not specified
Dates: June 3 – August 14
Application Deadline: One week before the start date
Eligibility: Students in grades 6-12
Machine Learning: Algorithms & Data Science introduces you to the fundamentals of how computers learn from data. You examine how AI systems recognize patterns, make predictions, and automate decisions by using large datasets. As you go deeper, you'll learn machine learning techniques, including regression, classification, clustering, and dimensionality reduction. You'll also study neural networks and other models that help computers to identify relationships within complex information. You'll also see how data scientists design and train AI systems by testing and refining algorithms. As a final activity, you modify an AI-based concept or prototype to address a specific real-world problem.
7. NC State University: Computer Science: AI Play
Location: NC State, Raleigh, NC
Cost: $550
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Not specified
Dates: July 13 – 17
Application Deadline: February 27
Eligibility: Rising 6th-8th graders
AI Play is an AI summer program where you'll explore artificial intelligence through digital game design and engineering challenges. Each day begins with a new technical problem that introduces a different AI concept. Working in small teams, you investigate possible solutions and experiment with ways to design or modify a system. The focus is on building familiarity with how AI tools can be developed, tested, and iteratively improved. At the end of each day, you present your designs and explain how your approach addressed the engineering problem.
8. AI Summer Camp – University of Central Florida Institute of Artificial Intelligence
Location: UCF Main Campus, Orlando, FL (commuter; lunch and materials included)
Cost: $350
Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Not specified; selective
Dates: June 15 – June 19
Application Deadline: Early decision: March 20; final deadline: April 10
Eligibility: Rising 8th graders who are at least 13 years old by September 1
The UCF AI Summer Camp is a one-week program run by UCF's Institute of Artificial Intelligence, where rising 8th graders explore generative AI, computer vision, robotics, and medical AI through hands-on activities and conceptual lessons. Students work through unplugged activities that demonstrate how machine learning works, simple computer vision experiments using browser-based tools, and team-based problem-solving on real-world AI challenges. The curriculum also covers AI ethics, including how AI systems can make mistakes and why fairness and safety matter in design. The week includes coffee chats with UCF AI scientists and PhD students alongside the daily programming.
9. UC Berkeley ATDP Secondary Division On-site: Working and Thinking with AI
Location: Virtual/University of California, Berkeley, CA
Cost: $790 (financial aid available)
Acceptance rate/cohort size: 18-24 students/class
Dates: June 22 – July 30
Application Deadline: March 23
Eligibility: Students completing grade 8 and up
This AI summer program goes beyond just coding and helps you examine artificial intelligence as both a tool and a topic of study. You'll experiment with AI systems such as chatbots to understand how they generate responses and assist with tasks. At the same time, you'll take part in classroom discussions that explore bigger questions about intelligence, decision-making, and the role that technology plays in society. You'll often alternate between using AI tools and analyzing their limitations or potential risks. Writing assignments and debates help you examine topics such as the impact of AI on education, work, and public information. By the end of the program, you’ll have built a small portfolio that includes essays, policy reflections, and creative projects developed with AI systems.
10. Johns Hopkins CTY: Data Structures and Algorithms
Location: Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA
Cost: $6,717 (commuter), $7,549 (residential)
Acceptance rate/cohort size: 18-20 students/class
Dates: July 19 – August 7
Application Deadline: June 8
Eligibility: Students in grades 7-11
This advanced AI summer program for middle school students focuses on understanding how computers solve complex problems step by step. You'll start by examining how computational problems can be broken down and represented using mathematical models. You then study data structures such as arrays, lists, stacks, queues, trees, and sets, to understand different ways information can be organized. You'll also learn about algorithms used for tasks such as sorting, searching, and processing large datasets. A key part of the program involves analyzing how efficient different algorithms are and how design approaches can make a program faster or more effective.
11. AI Play – Elon University
Location: Lindner Hall, Elon University, Alamance County, NC (commuter; lunch and snacks included)
Cost: $500
Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Limited seats; open enrollment
Dates: June 15 – June 19
Application Deadline: Rolling; register early due to limited seats
Eligibility: Rising 6th, 7th, and 8th graders
AI Play is a week-long day camp at Elon University led by computer science faculty and students, where middle schoolers explore the fundamentals of artificial intelligence through hands-on activities and digital game design. Each day focuses on a different AI principle, covering topics such as how robots interpret their environment, how AI systems make decisions through classification, and the ethics of using AI. Students combine creativity with coding and problem-solving skills to build their own projects over the course of the week.
12. Integem Summer Camps
Location: San Francisco and Los Angeles, CA
Cost: $549 - $669
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Not specified
Dates: Several camps throughout the summer
Application Deadline: Rolling
Eligibility: Students aged 10-14
Integem Summer Camps introduce middle school students to artificial intelligence through hands-on projects that combine coding, robotics, and interactive technologies. You might work with tools such as drones, robots, and augmented reality systems while learning how AI algorithms can control and enhance these technologies. Some activities focus on designing interactive 3D environments or building games that incorporate AI-driven behaviors. Other project tracks involve robotics engineering, where you program sensor-based systems and experiment with autonomous movement. The program also includes opportunities to explore aerospace technology through projects involving high-altitude balloons and drone systems.