Students of architecture, design, journalism and mechatronic engineering attending the University of Business and Technology (UBT) have come together to enrich the first edition of AB by bringing an innovative and groundbreaking approach for art enthusiasts in Kosovo. The UBT staff and volunteer students helped out with the management of art spaces, production, coordination, media coverage and stage setups.

However, what will remain as the highlight for the audience of the first edition of AB is the project of Sašo Sedlaček, called “Beggar Robot”, in which students Kenan Alija, Kushtrim Ajvazaj and Nart Gashi from Mechatronics helped set-up under the guidance of UBT lecturer Valmir Hoxha. Not only did the robot impress the visitors of AB, but the inventor of the robot, Sašo Sedlaček, even claimed that the robot built from the Kosovar students was superior to the one he built in Japan. Beggar Robot is a surrogate agency created for a world in which the marginalized, such as impoverished individuals and families, refugees and asylum seekers, elderly people, disabled people, and those hidden from the public view, will never step onto the street to beg, except in the most dire of circumstances. Beggar Robot is constructed entirely from old computer hardware and a few spare parts that were obtained at no cost.

UBT rector Edmond Hajrizi was very pleased with the volunteers who contributed in manyfold ways to such an important artistic manifestation in Kosovo such as the Autostrada Biennale, which amongst other things brought countless international tourists to the country.