Although there is quite a bit of overlap, Inventor & Autocad are primarily design tools, 3ds Max & Maya are visualization tools.
Maybe the challenge this year will be to design some type device or product (that will help humanity of course), and create a commercial to "market" it. You could do it all in 3ds Max, or if you had a strong CAD team, they could be more involved in the design while the visualization team was working on a creative marketing ideas. Of course both teams would have to work well together to have a chance at winning.
Hmmm... very different teams with diverse skill sets learning how to work together to deliver a winning product? Sounds like they're preparing you for life in the "real world". For example check out this
Prius ad. I'm sure CAD software was used to design the car and a creative visualization team was hired to develop the commercial.
But I'm just speculating. Looking forward to the next clue from Autodesk.