A From not knowing hackathons to winning one in just a month bejegyzés először CraftHub-én jelent meg.

For my first time at a hackathon I was part of the organizer team at Code #LikeABosch hackathon. How can I put it delicately? I couldn’t have gone to a more exciting hackathon. Just imagine stepping into our venue, Gamerland, then walking towards the main area through a blue led lighted tunnel. From 516 registration we welcomed 75 teams at the hybrid hackathon. In Gamerland we had 78 competitors with us, the rest participated online.

The Code #LikeABosch hackathon was an exciting but very challenging 48 hour competition where Bosch gave away a total of 11 500 Euro to the winners. There were two types of challenges: hardware and software. During these challenging hours Bosch provided mentors who gave tips to the teams regarding their projects. 

The best 8 teams (4 from each) got into the finals. After their creative and informative videos, they pitched their exciting ideas in 4 minutes to the jury and other competitors for the grand prize.

With the challenges the participants tried to solve current worldwide problems, which could be great for society.  After you know more about the topics of the challenges and the winner projects you will come to the same conclusion as I have: we have some geniuses living among us, so let me introduce them to you.

For the hardware task the groups had to come up with an idea on how to save energy at home due to the high bills and energy waste. All of the groups created brilliant and creative ideas. The hardware challenge winner, Superset even demonstrated their project on stage with a radiator and 4D printed components. They designed a heat control system and made a prototype of a wireless heat sensor cube, which can detect the temperature and the people as well, so if it is needed the system can warm up only the relevant area by saving a lot of energy. Honestly, I was stunned at how they could build this amazing idea of theirs in just 48 hours.

The software challenge was about developing object tracking systems for cars. This challenge was really popular among the competitors. The winner team- called HFDN (High Frequency Data Network)- had 3 young members, and this was their first time at a hackathon. They impressed the jury and the other teams so much that they won the grand prize as well. First time competing and 8000 Euro in the pockets? – not bad. Let’s see what all the fuss is about! They developed a secure and low latency network where cars can transmit their sensor information and this information could be used by other vehicles on the road. With this in progress there would be fewer accidents among the cars.

The Audience Award winner, which means the most liked project among everyone who watched the hackathon, also participated in the software challenge. Their team is called HeliCar, and their project was about a drone that follows the car and gives information to the driver.

The venue provided videogames for the competitors for relaxation and extra fun during these testing hours. You could find many kinds of games from the old days (Super Mario, Pacman) to the 21st century, such as Guitar Hero, Fifa and a game for car racing with actual pedals and changers. To be honest, besides the competitors the staff also enjoyed every minute they could spend there playing against each other in their freetime. Unfortunately, my boss defeated me ruthlessly in Guitar Hero, but maybe for my sake it’s the best.

All in all, it was an amazing, cheerful 3-day experience where I met a lot of interesting and clever people. Bosch provided interesting challenges at a great venue. The competitors as well the Bosch and the organizers from CraftHub loved every minute of the Code #LikeABosch hackathon. 

If you are interested in the final projects check this link out!

A My first-ever hackathon: Code #LikeABosch 2022 bejegyzés először CraftHub-én jelent meg.

Before Covid-19 appeared, hackathons were usually offline or fully online. However, the pandemic forced us to move all of our hacking marathons to the virtual space. We quickly learned all of its perks and downsides. Although it allows us and the competitors to build a diverse international network from the comfort of our own homes, it can seem quite repetitive after a while, and the personal side of hackathons just can’t be imitated with online workshops and virtual fun activities.

As soon as the circumstances allowed us to go offline again, we did. However, we did not want to lose the advantages of online hackathons especially because of all the participants who can not yet travel abroad. 

So in the first half of 2022, we organized two hybrid hackathons that were pretty successful, thus we plan on going forward with the hybrid formats as a large amount of the projects submitted comes from online teams.

Hack& Heal | March

Our health / healthcare related hackathon debuted in an online format in 2021. This year with more than 360 applicants from 48 different countries, 90 participants worked at the Budapest venue and the rest joined online. As a result, the number of projects doubled compared to last year’s event, and 52 projects were submitted. Many of which focused on helping Ukraine. Offering psychosocial support for Ukrainian children, reducing the burden of traveling, or improving the mental health of refugees.

3 winner teams took home 4,500 Euros and the grand winner won an industrial-quality 3D printer as well.

CraftHack | May

CraftHack was created as a companion event of Craft Conference for the younger generation who are ready to innovate. In 48 hours, 36 amazing projects were born again by 281 registered participants at this year’s CraftHack hybrid hackathon. Our partners provided fascinating and the winner teams brought home a total of € 9,000!

Gamerland was partly responsible for the unique and fun atmosphere of the hackathon. Thanks to them participants were provided with a modern gaming arena in Budapest with the most powerful computers, consoles, simulators, VR, and exclusive private rooms with many entertainment options.

Fall Hackathons 2022

We can not yet reveal all of our plans for the fall season, but make sure to follow us on all social media platforms because JunctionX Budapest is definitely coming back strong in October, and two other exciting surprise hackathons are also in the making! 🤫 Stay tuned!

A The rise of hybrid hackathons in 2022 bejegyzés először CraftHub-én jelent meg.

With a scalable and holistic loyalty logic, Antavo supercharges the marketing strategy of omnichannel and eCommerce companies and delivers a next-level shopping experience with best-in-class in-store capabilities.

Their challenge at CraftHack was creating a new loyalty program without limiting creativity and is feasible in the current world. Check out their winner project!

TIER Mobility’s mission is to change mobility for good in urban areas and provide alternative means of transportation next to public transport and cars . They want to tap into exploring new cities and cultures and enable their customers to pick a sustainable way to do so.

For their challenge, TIER envisioned an app that would support guided tours and trips to get around a city for sightseeing. Here’s their winner project!

Last but not least, Varian envisions a world without fear of cancer. Early detection of cancer greatly increases the chances of successful treatment, so this is what they are focusing on at our hackathon as well!

Their challenge for the competitors was to develop an application that helps reduce the number of cancer patients by providing prevention strategies and improving early detection. Take a look at their winner project!

The winners also got the unique opportunity to introduce their projects at the beginning of June at one of Europe’s biggest software delivery conferences, also organized by CraftHub: Craft Conference with over 1600 attendees from around the world!

Not to mention the amazing venue provided by Gamerland, a modern gaming arena in Budapest with the most powerful computers, consoles, simulators, VR, and exclusive private rooms with many entertainment options. Check out the aftermovie to get a glimpse of it!

And to end it on a cheerful note, here are a few feedbacks from our inspiring competitors:

“The magic about CraftHack was that unknown people became wonderful supportive team members in no time. Our brainstorming session was so inspiring and working together felt like we’ve worked together for a long time. Acceptance, professionalism, trust, respect and so much laughter. That was my CraftHack!”

“CraftHack 2022 was an inspiring and well-organized event. We could meet so many interesting and talented participants but also talk to clever mentors from the industry. The challenges were well thought out and very practice-oriented. The organizers were friendly, professional, and smart. Most of all, we all had fun and learned a lot. CraftHack is highly recommended!”

A CraftHack | From hackathon ideas to pitching in front of big-tech investors bejegyzés először CraftHub-én jelent meg.