3GEN Robotics Is Proud to Sponsor Pink Droyd, FTC Team 10393
This season, 3GEN Robotics is sponsoring Pink Droyd, FIRST Tech Challenge Team 10393 from Midwood High School in Brooklyn. Pink Droyd has competed in FIRST Tech Challenge since 2015 [1]. This year the students will design, build, and code a robot for BIOBUZZ, the 2026-2027 game. We're glad to be in their corner.
What Is FIRST Tech Challenge?
FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) is a robotics program for students in grades 7 through 12. Teams design, build, code, and operate their own robots, then play a themed game in an alliance format against other teams [2]. A season runs the whole school year [3], so students go through many rounds of design, testing, and repair before the robot is ready for competition.
FTC is one of the programs run by FIRST, a nonprofit that inventor Dean Kamen founded in 1989 [4]. FIRST asks teams to compete with Gracious Professionalism, which it describes as doing high-quality work while valuing others and respecting the community [4].
In New York City, FTC events are run by NYC FIRST. It has run robotics competitions across the city since 2000 and operates two STEM Centers for students, coaches, and mentors [5].
This Season's Game: BIOBUZZ
Each season FIRST releases a new game. BIOBUZZ, presented by RTX, was revealed at the season kickoff on September 12, 2026 [2]. It belongs to the FIRST CANOPY season, which asks teams to help engineer a thriving planet [2].
The game takes its theme from biodiversity. Robots face off head to head to complete objectives inspired by the natural world [2]. FIRST CEO Chris Moore said the challenge "encourages students to look to the natural world for inspiration" [2]. Pink Droyd's banner fits the theme with a hornet covered in flowers. The hornet is a nod to Howie the Hornet, Midwood's mascot [7].
Meet Pink Droyd
Pink Droyd is one of Midwood High School's FTC robotics teams, and in 2019 it won an award for its robot's design [6]. The team is registered for the 2026 season with Midwood High School as its sponsoring organization [1]. Like most FTC teams, its students handle the design, programming, and testing themselves, with coaches and mentors guiding them.
The team's banner also thanks Polymaker, Robotime (ROKR and Rolife), and the Gene Haas Foundation. We're happy to support these students alongside them.
Why 3GEN Robotics Supports FTC Teams
3GEN Robotics makes Bellwether, a platform for robot deployment and operations [8]. Our work is about getting robots to do useful jobs in real buildings. Doing that well takes people who can design a mechanism, write the code that drives it, and keep testing when the first version fails.
An FTC season builds those skills. Students learn that a robot that works on the bench may struggle on a competition field. They fix it and test it again before the next match, which is the same loop engineers run when they put robots to work in industry.
We look forward to following Pink Droyd through the season and seeing what the team builds.
Want to Support Student Robotics?
If your company wants to support FTC teams in New York City, NYC FIRST is a good place to start. To talk with us about robotics or our work with students, reach out to the 3GEN Robotics team.
References
[1] FIRST. "Team 10393: Pink Droyd." FIRST Tech Challenge Events, 2026. https://ftc-events.firstinspires.org/2026/team/10393
[2] FIRST. "FIRST Tech Challenge Teams to Draw Inspiration from the Natural World During BIOBUZZ Presented by RTX." FIRST Press Room, September 12, 2026. https://www.firstinspires.org/about/press-room/first-tech-challenge-teams-to-draw-inspiration-from-the-natural-world-during-biobuzz-presented-by-rtx
[3] FIRST. "FIRST Tech Challenge Game and Season." FIRST, 2026. https://www.firstinspires.org/programs/ftc/game-and-season
[4] FIRST. "Vision and Mission." FIRST, 2026. https://www.firstinspires.org/about/vision-and-mission
[5] NYC FIRST. "NYC FIRST." NYC FIRST, 2026. https://www.nycfirst.org/
[6] Zheng, Ashley, and Eric Zeng. "Robotics Team Qualifies for NYC Championship." The Midwood Argus, January 14, 2019. https://www.midwoodargus.com/blog/2019/1/14/robotics-team-qualifies-for-nyc-championship
[7] Zheng, Victor. "Meet Howie, Midwood's Anonymous Mascot." The Midwood Argus, November 20, 2018. https://www.midwoodargus.com/blog/2018/11/20/meet-howie-midwoods-anonymous-mascot
[8] 3GEN Robotics. "Bellwether: Rapid Robot Deployment & Operations Platform." 3GEN Robotics, 2026. https://www.3genrobotics.com/bellwether