GoatHacks is Back for the 2026 Season! See our organizers or our discord for the full schedule for the event.
Requirements
Submissions of the code repositories for the project, and/or image of the hardware hack will be required on Devpost.
Due to the nature of the in person "expo style" judging, recorded demos are not required, but are welcomed for historical record.
Prizes
Software Track #1 Prize
HP Series 5527sh Monitor
Hardware Track #1 Prize
JBL Charge 6 Speaker
Game Track #1 Prize
Razer Leviathan V2 X Soundbar
Best Community Track #1 Prize
Apple Airtags
Best Rookie Track #1 Prize
G502 Logitech Mouse
Riverside Research Track Prize
Asus Pro Art Display
HNTB Challenge Prize
Best Use of Gemini API
WIN: Google Swag Kits!
It’s time to push the boundaries of what's possible with AI using Google Gemini. Check out the Gemini API to build AI-powered apps that make your friends say WHOA. So, what can Gemini do for your hackathon project?
Understand language like a human and build a chatbot that gives personalized advice
Analyze info like a supercomputer and create an app that summarizes complex research papers
Generate creative content like code, scripts, music, and more
Think of the possibilities… what will you build with the Google Gemini API this weekend?
Best Use of Solana
WIN: Ledger Nano S Plus!
The world of development is evolving fast and Solana is leading the charge with a network built to handle all of your infrastructure needs. Forget high fees and slow confirmations, it’s time to build applications that are fast, efficient, and scalable.
Harness Solana's core advantages like blazing fast execution and near-zero transaction costs to make your hackathon ideas become real world projects. With Solana, the possibilities are endless.
Create a game, social app, or consumer product that relies on instant, high-frequency transactions.
Design a sophisticated trading, lending, or decentralized exchange (DEX).
Build a prototype for supply chain, identity, or payments that can handle massive, real-world volume.
Show us how you can innovate with Solana for a chance to win some cool prizes for you and each member of your team!
Best Use of DigitalOcean
WIN: Retro Wireless Mouse!
DigitalOcean offers a reliable and easy-to-use cloud platform for every stage of your project. Leverage core services like Droplets, Managed Databases, and App Platform to build, deploy, and scale your application effortlessly. Building with AI? DigitalOcean Gradient™ AI enables you to build, train, and deploy machine learning models, including access to GPU infrastructure and serverless inference!
Sign up for DigitalOcean today and get $200 worth of free credits that you can use towards building your next great hack. Build with DigitalOcean's robust cloud infrastructure for a chance to win some great prizes for you and each of your teammates!
Best Use of ElevenLabs
WIN: Wireless Earbuds!
Deploy natural, human-sounding audio with ElevenLabs. Create realistic, dynamic, and emotionally expressive voices for any project, from interactive AI companions to narrated stories and voice-enabled apps. ElevenLabs will empower you to build rich, immersive experiences without the need for actors or complex audio production, using simply the power of AI.
Integrate fully autonomous audio experiences into your hack with ElevenLabs and give your project a voice, along with giving your team the chance to win some wireless earbuds!
Best Use of Snowflake API
WIN: Arduino Tiny ML Kit!
Play with industry-leading LLMs on a single account using the Snowflake APIs. Adding AI capabilities into your application can be as simple as a single CURL command to Snowflake’s REST API.
Build customized applications, RAG powered chat bots, or embed AI-powered features into your app in half the time with half the hassle. Get started for free with a special, student 120-day Snowflake trial and check out this repository for an example of the Snowflake REST API in action.
Best Use of MongoDB Atlas
WIN: M5GO IoT Starter Kit!
MongoDB Atlas takes the leading modern database and makes it accessible in the cloud! Get started with a $50 credit for students or sign up for the Atlas free forever tier (no credit card required). Along with a suite of services and functionalities, you'll have everything you need to manage all of your data, and you can get a headstart with free resources from MongoDB University! Build a hack using MongoDB Atlas for a chance to win a M5GO IoT Starter Kit for you and each member of your team.
Best Use of Arm
WIN: Handheld Game Console!
Building with ARM allows you to create highly efficient, performant, and scalable applications & software! From IoT and Smart Devices, to AI and Machine Learning, ARM’s high performance computing and extreme energy efficiency will power whatever hackathon project you’re creating into the next level.
With hundreds of sample projects and tutorials, you’ll find everything you need to get started and then some, at ARM’s developer hub. With ARM powering the vast majority of the world’s smartphones, tablets, laptops, servers, and IoT devices, now is your chance to get hands on with the most popular processor architecture around!
Assemble your team and build your hack using one of Arm's learning paths today for a chance to win some awesome prizes!
Devpost Achievements
Submitting to this hackathon could earn you:
Judges
Nikita Ostapenko
Ben Santana
Sara Aly
MLH
Artem Frenk
Riverside Research
HNTB
Judging Criteria
-
Technology
How technically impressive was the hack? Was the technical problem the team tackled difficult? Did it use a particularly clever technique or did it use many different components? Did the technology involved make you go "Wow"? -
Design
Did the team put thought into the user experience? How well designed is the interface? For a website, this might be about how beautiful the CSS or graphics are. For a hardware project, it might be more about how good the human-computer interaction is. -
Completion
Does the hack work? Did the team achieve everything they wanted? -
Learning
Did your team stretch themselves? Did you try to learn something new? What kind of projects have you worked on before? What new things did you take away?
Questions? Email the hackathon manager
Tell your friends
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