Thea Fun Fact: Our Founder Was a VEX Robotics Driver

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Did you know Thea’s founder, Baker Bruce, spent most of high school behind the wheel of some of the most competitive VEX robots in the world? From 2022 to 2024, he was the driver for a robot named Chris, and in 2025, he was the driver for the #9 team in the world, the Pink Shinee Unicorns. His experience with VEX helped shape the problem-solving mindset behind Thea—and proved that creativity and precision can go hand in hand. 

High school robotics blends engineering, creativity, and collaboration into one action-packed extracurricular. Students don’t just build robots—they learn how to lead teams, think critically, manage projects, and solve real-world problems with creative solutions. Whether you're interested in coding, CAD, or strategy, there’s a role for you on a robotics team. You get to compete, iterate, and see your ideas come to life in a high-stakes environment full of like-minded peers. 

What is the VEX Robotics Competition? 

VEX Robotics is a global competition where student-built robots face off in 2-on-2 alliances. Each season features a new game with unique scoring objectives. Matches are two minutes long: the first 15 seconds are autonomous, where robots execute pre-programmed actions without driver input, followed by a 1 minute and 45 second driver-controlled period. 

Tournaments begin with qualification rounds, where teams are randomly paired into alliances and accumulate wins and ranking points. Based on rankings, a process called alliance selection follows, where top teams choose partners for elimination rounds. The event culminates in finals, where the last alliances standing compete for the tournament title. 

Teams also submit Engineering Notebooks and participate in judging interviews to compete for awards that recognize design, programming, outreach, and innovation. 

The VEX World Championship in Dallas, Texas 

Each year, the best VEX teams from across the world gather in Dallas, Texas for the VEX World Championship, the largest robotics competition on Earth. After days of matches, the top 16 alliances advance to the Dome, an arena-style finals showcase in front of thousands of fans. 

Congratulations to the 2025 World Champion Alliance, 87258A Dragon Team from Beijing, Beijing, China and Team 71266V BASIS International School Wuhan from Wuhan, Hubei, China! 

Thinking About Getting Started? 

If you're in middle or high school and curious about robotics, here's some advice: 

• Try everything: Whether it’s coding, building, scouting, or design, there’s more to robotics than just driving the bot. 

• Get creative: The best solutions aren’t always the most obvious ones. Innovation is part of the fun. 

• Ask for help: The robotics community is generous. Many teams share their code, designs, and advice online. 

  
  

Thea celebrates students who go deep on their interests, and robotics is a rewarding path you can take.