The Network for Applied Technology (NAT) invites you to natHacks 2025, a 64-hour innovation sprint where students and early-career professionals tackle real-world challenges at the intersection of biology, health, and technology. This year, natHacks will be held from November 7-10, 2025, on the eighth floor of the Donadeo Innovation Centre for Engineering building.
Participants will work in interdisciplinary teams, receive expert mentorship, and gain access to advanced hardware such as biosensors, motion detectors, and AI tools. Each year, over $30,000 in seed funding and in-kind resources are available to help winning teams carry their projects forward beyond the hackathon.
This year, hackers can join one of two divisions:
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Standard Division: Form your own team and build original solutions within the themes of MedTech, EdTech, and EcoTech.
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Problem Provider Division: Be matched with a team and collaborate directly with clinicians, researchers, and industry professionals on real-world problems, with structured pre-hackathon development. Teams will build original solutions to problems in one of the three themes: MedTech, EdTech, and EcoTech.
natHacks 2025 Timeline and Deadlines
Participant Registration Opens: September 1, 2025
Problem Provider Participant Registration Closes: October 17, 2025
Participant Registration Closes: October 25, 2025, at 11:59 PM MST
Development Report 1: October 24, 2025
Development Report 2: October 31, 2025
Development Report 3: November 7, 2025
Hardware Lending Form Opens: October 25, 2025
Hardware Lending Form for Problem Provider Division Closes: October 31, 2025
Hardware Lending Form for Standard Division Closes: November 3, 2025
Hackathon Weekend: November 7-10, 2025
Networking Mixer: November 7, 3-5PM MT
Judging & Awards: November 10, 2025
Post-Hackathon Support: November 2025 – November 2026
natHacks 2025 Key Dates
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Event |
Date |
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Participant Registration Opens |
September 1, 2025 |
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Problem Provider Participant Registration Closes |
October 17, 2025 |
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Participant Registration Closes |
October 25, 2025 |
|
Development Report 1 Due |
October 24, 2025 |
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Development Report 2 Due |
October 31, 2025 |
|
Development Report 3 Due |
November 7, 2025 |
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Hardware Lending Form Due |
October 31, 2025 at 11:59 PM MST for Problem Provider Division November 3, 2025 at 11:59 PM MST for Standard Division |
|
Hackathon Weekend |
November 7–10, 2025 |
|
Networking Mixer |
November 7, 2025 (3–5 PM MT) |
|
Judging & Awards |
November 10, 2025 |
|
Post-Hackathon Support |
November 2025 – November 2026 |
Requirements
All competitive submissions must include:
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A project code repository with code solely developed during the 64 hour natHacks Hackathon Weekend. This code repository should include all information about your project, including:
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A ReadMe File (Documentation) that explains the device concept, how to access the software and any additional information like (powerpoint information, links to try out the software, credits, etc)
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The Code itself
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About the project section – explain what inspired your team, what your team learned, how you built your project, and the challenges you faced.
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A brief written project summary, which should not exceed 250 words.
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A live presentation to Judges (in-person at the UofA)
More details on submissions, and detailed project rubrics, will be provided to participants closer to the event.
Note that prizes can only be offered to teams consisting of at least 50% Alberta residents.
Prizes
1st Place - Standard Division (Multiple Tracks)
1st place winners from the MedTech, EdTech, and EcoTech themes in the Standard Division will be eligible for $2000 CAD in seed funding, going towards the future development of their hackathon projects. An additional $2000 CAD of in-kind services are available (legal services, cloud compute resources, business mentorship, and infrastructure support) as needed.
1st Place - Problem Provider Division
1st place winners from the Problem Provider Division will be eligible for $2000 CAD in seed funding, going towards the future development of their hackathon projects. An additional $2000 CAD of in-kind services are available (legal services, cloud compute resources, business mentorship) as needed.
2nd Place - Standard Division (Multiple Tracks)
2nd place winners from the MedTech, EdTech, and EcoTech themes in the Standard Division will be eligible for $1000 CAD in seed funding, going towards the future development of their hackathon projects. An additional $1000 CAD of in-kind services are available (legal services, cloud compute resources, business mentorship, and infrastructure support) as needed.
2nd Place - Problem Provider Division
2nd place winners from the Problem Provider Division will be eligible for $1000 CAD in seed funding, going towards the future development of their hackathon projects. An additional $1000 CAD of in-kind services are available (legal services, cloud compute resources, business mentorship) as needed.
3rd Place - Standard Division (Multiple Tracks)
3rd place winners from the MedTech, EdTech, and EcoTech themes in the Standard Division will be eligible for $500 CAD in seed funding, going towards the future development of their hackathon projects. An additional $500 CAD of in-kind services are available (legal services, cloud compute resources, business mentorship, and infrastructure support) as needed.
3rd Place - Problem Provider Division
3rd place winners from the Problem Provider Division will be eligible for $500 CAD in seed funding, going towards the future development of their hackathon projects. An additional $500 CAD of in-kind services are available (legal services, cloud compute resources, business mentorship) as needed.
Devpost Achievements
Submitting to this hackathon could earn you:
Judges
Eden Redman
NAT
Rehma Khan
LifeTechCare
Dr. Alireza Nouri
University of Alberta
Curtis Cooper
Appsquire Consulting Ltd.
Yash Mouje
NAT
Dr. Hilal Gul
University of Alberta
Dr. Lynn Shehab
University of Alberta
Amanda Stadel
BioAlberta
Shayleen Ghasshemi
University of Alberta
Anna Sun
United Nations
Dr. Darren Fast
University of Alberta
Micah Louison
CoalaEnergy
Dawn Osland
Osland Medical Billing Tools
Peter Keith
University of Alberta
Dr. Reza Enaloui
Semitechnic Corp
Dr. Shubhashis Ghosh
Suncor Energy
Judging Criteria
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Judging Criteria
Technical Rigor (10pt) Functionality (10pt) Creativity (10pt) Innovation (10pt) Commercial viability (5pt) Delivery (5pt) Impact (5pt) Written summary (5pt) Standard: Interdisciplinary Team (5pts) Problem Provider: Dev Report Quality (5pts)
Questions? Email the hackathon manager
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