The DEF CON Robot Contest (often listed as the RC or Robot Contest at DEF CON) is a long‑running competition held at the DEF CON hacking conference in Las Vegas. Teams build and program robots to complete physical, puzzle-like, or hacking‑themed tasks on a contest field. The specific rules and challenges change by year (e.g., DEF CON 23 Robot Contest, DEF CON 23B Robot Contest), but they typically involve autonomous navigation, manipulation, and problem‑solving under time pressure. The contest is not specifically a high school program, but DEF CON has a strong culture of welcoming curious, self‑directed learners of many ages, provided they attend with appropriate supervision and follow conference policies. Students interested in robotics, embedded systems, and security can benefit by forming or joining a team, learning hardware design, control systems, and coding, and networking with a community of experienced makers and security researchers. Participation requires conference attendance and building your own robot; there is no separate registration fee for the contest beyond DEF CON entry. Because DEF CON and its contests evolve yearly, prospective high school participants should carefully review the current year’s Robot Contest rules, age guidelines, and safety requirements on the official DEF CON website, and, if under 18, plan to attend with a parent/guardian or responsible adult.