The Innovatera Hackathon is a purpose-driven initiative designed to inspire and empower women in Egypt to lead in the fields of technology, innovation, and entrepreneurship. By mobilizing young women developers and innovators, the challenge aims to create digital solutions that address critical obstacles faced by Egyptian women, fostering social impact and inclusion.
The Core Mission
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Empowerment: Supporting women to take leadership roles in the tech ecosystem.
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Innovation: Developing solutions that positively transform the lives of women in Egypt.
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Collaboration: Connecting local talent with international tech communities and expert mentors.
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Sustainability: Promoting technology that is rooted in local culture and built for long-term social good.
Project Themes
Teams must choose one of two primary tracks:
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Health & Wellbeing: Applications supporting physical, reproductive, or mental health for women.
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Green & Sustainable Innovation: Projects that integrate women’s empowerment with environmental sustainability.
Get Started!
Ready to jump in? The hackathon officially runs from June 6 to June 26, so gather your crew and let's get building. Here is everything you need to know before you start:
1. Squad Up
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Put together a dream team of 5 members. You can mix and match students from UFE or any other university!
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Bonus Alert: If your team happens to have +50% women, that actually counts as a bonus for you!
2. Dream Up Your MVP
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Pick a real-world challenge Egyptian women are facing in either health or the environment.
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Sketch out a mobile-first app that is accessible and ready to scale.
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Tech tip: You can totally build your own AI models! Throwing some functional AI into your prototype (MVP) is highly encouraged and will definitely impress the judges.
3. Flex on Socials (Bonus!)
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Want to score some extra points? Run a social media campaign around your idea or your team's journey! Hype it up; it’s a massive bonus for your final score.
4. Shoot Your Shot
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Fill out the official application form.
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Just give us the elevator pitch of your tech idea and let us know what you plan to actually build (like a mobile app or a website).
5. Level Up with Mentors
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If your team makes the shortlist, you’ll unlock a 3-week building phase.
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You'll get to join 3 online capacity-building sessions to level up your technical skills and business models.
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You’ll also be paired with an expert mentor to help you polish your product before the final!
Requirements
To win the Innovatera Hackathon, your team needs to build a high-impact digital solution that tackles real obstacles Egyptian women face. Make sure your project fits into one of our two main tracks: Health & Wellbeing or Green & Sustainable Innovation.
Here is what we are looking for in a winning project:
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Mobile-First Vibes: Think phones first. Try to design a mobile app so your solution is super easy for your audience to access and scale.
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Keep it Local: Build your product in Arabic, English, or both so it actually clicks with the local community.
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Stay Grounded: Make sure your idea vibes with the local culture and taps into community resources.
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Make it Real: We want to see projects that can survive and make a difference in the real world, not just look good on paper!
What You Actually Need to Submit
Don't worry, we won't ask for everything on day one. The submission process is just meant to track your journey from a lightbulb moment to a fully baked tech product.
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Your Big Idea: When you first apply, just hit us with your general concept and tell us which of the two themes you are tackling.
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What You're Building: Let us know what your final tech baby will be (e.g., "we're making a mobile app" or "we're building a website").
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The MVP: Time to show off! Later on, you'll need to hand over a mostly-finished, working version of your project so the judges can see it in action.
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The Hustle (Business Model): Having cool tech is great, but how does it survive? During the mentorship phase, you’ll map out and submit a business model for your project.
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The Pitch Deck: For the grand finale, you’ll need to put together a slick, refined presentation to pitch your product live on the UFE stage!
Prizes
1st place
Devpost Achievements
Submitting to this hackathon could earn you:
Judges
Malak
Judging Criteria
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Technical Execution
Quality of the AI-based prototype (MVP). Preference for mobile-first approach. Code functionality, complexity, and stability. -
Social Impact
Depth of solution in addressing women's physical, reproductive, or mental health, or green innovation. Evidence of fostering inclusion. -
Innovation
Originality of the digital solution. Use of technology to solve problems in a creative, non-traditional way. -
Sustainability
Potential for real-world application and scalability. Viability of the business model developed during mentorship. -
Presentation
Quality of product refinement and clarity of the pitch at the UFE Amphitheatre. Ability to answer technical/business inquiries.
Questions? Email the hackathon manager
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