📅 Dates
Hackathon Kicks Off: June 18, 2026
Submission Deadline: August 15, 2026 at 9:00 PM PDT
Judging & Results: 7 days after submissions close
All times listed are PDT. Be sure to submit before the deadline — late entries won't be accepted.
👥 Who Can Join
Open to high school and college students
Teams of 1–5 members (solo entries welcome)
Open worldwide — no location restrictions
🏆 Prizes
- Best Overall Project — for the project that delivers across the board: strong creativity, solid execution, and high overall polish.
- Best First-Timer Project — for an impressive build from a participant new to coding or hackathons.
- Most Creative Project — for the most original concept and the freshest approach to a problem.
- Best Real-World Application — for a project with clear practical use and tangible value for its intended users.
📊 Judging Criteria
- Technical Execution (30%) — How well the project functions and how solidly it's built, including code quality, structure, and tool usage.
- Originality & Creativity (25%) — How distinct and inventive the idea is compared to other submissions.
- Impact & Usefulness (20%) — Whether the project addresses a real need and offers meaningful, practical value.
- UX & Design (15%) — How polished, intuitive, and enjoyable the project is to interact with.
- Clarity of Submission (10%) — How well the project is presented, demoed, and documented for judges to understand.