"Exceptional": Cape Recife High School Wins Samsung Solve for Tomorrow 2026 With Recycling Invention

• The Brick Beasts robotics team from Gqeberha beat 143 schools to take first place at Samsung Solve for Tomorrow 2026
• The Cape Recife High School learners invented a way to turn discarded plastic bottles into 3D-printing material for sports equipment
• The winning team earned R100,000 worth of STEM products for their school along with Samsung devices for each member

A robotics team from Gqeberha has pulled off one of the most exciting young innovator stories South Africa has seen this year. The Brick Beasts, representing Cape Recife High School, walked away as national champions of the Samsung Solve for Tomorrow 2026 competition.

Their winning idea was both simple and ingenious: converting discarded plastic bottles into 3D-printing filament that can be used to manufacture sports equipment. The prototype impressed judges enough to see the team rise above 143 competing schools from across the country.

Eastern Capewere also the only school from the Eastern Cape to qualify for the competition, making the victory even more significant for the province.

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Brick Beasts beat the country

The win earned the school R100,000 worth of STEM products, along with a Samsung Flip8 and a Fit3 watch for every learner and teacher on the team. During the competition held in Pretoria, the team had the opportunity to meet Minister of Basic Education Siviwe Gwarube and Simon Lee, President and CEO of Samsung Africa.

The school's coaches, Mr Greyling and Ms Bell, gave up part of their holiday to travel with the learners and support them through the final rounds.

Instagram creator @vanja_oosthuizen shared the story on 12 October 2026 in a video that brought the achievement to a wider audience, and the response was immediate.

View the Instagram video below:

Mzansi celebrates the young innovators

South Africans were quick to show their appreciation in the comments on Vanja's page:

@tdactive wrote:

"Oh this is everything. ❤🔥"

@joshuagxekwa shared:

"🔥🔥🔥👏👏👏🇿🇦🇿🇦🇿🇦"

@wian._.landman said:

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"Go Cape Recife 🙌"

@b.cooper25 added:

"Great topic!! 🔥❤"

@hilgoldberg called it:

"Exceptional!!!"

The victory is a reminder that some of South Africa's brightest young minds are turning everyday waste into world-class ideas.

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Source: Briefly News