Announcing the second annual AdMob student App challenge on the Google Apps Developer blog, Henry Wang, Associate Product Marketing Manager asks:

Did you know that there are more mobile devices than people?

He goes on to present some convincing figures:

In 2014, there were 7.4BN devices and an estimated 7.2 billion people. Mobile is quickly becoming the most popular way to get online, even exceeding the time spent on desktop computers. This has contributed greatly to the growth of the app ecosystem, with consumers spending on average 37 hours a month on mobile apps. As apps are becoming more prominent in our everyday lives, it’s more important now than ever to learn app development.

The app building challenge is open to teams of between one and five people. Although billed as a "student contest" and restricted to those enrolled in an educational institution participants need to be above the age of majority in their country or jurisdiction of residence. Other restrictions are that it is void in Burma (Myanmar), Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Quebec, Sudan, Syria, and "where prohibited by law".

Participants are required to submit a mobile application that is available in the Google Play Store or Apple’s App Store and uses AdMob for monetization and also need to create a business plan that outlines how they managed the project, gained users, and use AdMob to make money.

 As outlined in the video, the winning team will receive an all expenses paid, week-long trip to San Francisco, including a visit to the Googleplex plus a featured spot on the Google Play Store and a promotional video starring the winning app.

In addition the finalists from each of the four global regions (North America, Latin America, Europe Middle East & Africa, and Asia Pacific) will receive Google devices and see their app featured on the AdMob website.

The deadline for entering the contest is June 28, 2016.