The Robin Hood and X Prize foundations will join forces to launch a series of prize competitions designed to find solutions to the problems of poverty in New York City and beyond.

By offering a prize of at least $1 million and crowdsourcing solutions from teams and individuals around the world, the organizations aim to identify new approaches to fighting poverty that can be put to the test in New York City. In the coming months, the two organizations will work to determine the parameters of the first competition, with homelessness, access to education, unemployment, and health care among the ideas being discussed.

The partnership was announced on Monday during Robin Hood's annual fundraising gala, which raised a total of $57 million for poverty-fighting efforts in the city.

"This prize will bring the greatest and most innovative minds around the globe to helping poor New Yorkers achieve their dreams," said Robin Hood executive director David Saltzman. "The cavalry is coming and we are sounding a clarion call to attack poverty in ways previously unimaginable."