From December 4 to 8, 2023, the SAF 2023-International STEAM Azerbaijan Festival took place at the Baku Expo Center, supported by the Ministry of Science and Education. SAF 2023 featured a total of 14 competitions and 1 exhibition category, attracting 868 local and 159 foreign participants from 11 countries in the final stage of the festival. Foreign participants hailed from Türkiye, Netherlands, Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Great Britain, Kazakhstan, Norway, Slovakia, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.

In the global SAF 2023, 27 teams secured first place, 73 teams clinched second place, and 67 teams earned third place. Special nominations were awarded to 101 teams. Out of 100+ teams in the Hackathon University category, 16 local and 3 foreign teams advanced to the final stage. Three teams representing Khazar University were mentored by university faculty member Fariz Hasanli.

These teams dedicated 48 hours to developing startup programs focused on integrating computer and mobile games into education. Khazar University students Farid Aliyev, Raksana Shekarova, and Sharkiyya Rahimli (CodeCrypts team) received gold medals, while Leyla Abishli, Lala Maharramova, and Zeynal Mardanli (Reapers team) secured silver medals. Guller Farzali and Mahir Jahangirov (BlackJack team) were awarded bronze medals. Notably, the gold medal from Khazar University achieved a higher score than two other gold medals, standing out as the top performer (first of first).