Hack@Davidson is the only student-run hackathon at Davidson College. Join us February 20-22, 2026 at the Hurt Hub@Davidson for 36 hours of building, learning, and connecting with students from across the country. Past winners have included no-code projects, so don't let experience hold you back.

Requirements

All submissions must include:

  1. Project Title – Give your hack a name
  2. Description – Explain what your project does, what inspired it, and how you built it
  3. Demo Video – A short video (under 3 minutes) showing your project in action
  4. GitHub Repository (not applicable for no-code track) – Link to your public repo with code created during the hackathon (February 20-22, 2026)
  5. Team Members – Add all team members to your Devpost submission
  6. Categories – Select which prize categories you're submitting for

 

Your project must be started and completed during the hackathon. Pre-existing code or projects are not allowed, though you may use open-source libraries and APIs.

Hackathon Sponsors

Prizes

15 non-cash prizes
2025 Apple 11-inch iPad & 3 months of Eleven Labs Pro
1 winner

First Prize (overall)

Apple Watch SE 2 44mm
1 winner

Second Prize (overall)

AirPods 4
1 winner

Third Prize (overall)

Best Project Built with ElevenLabs
1 winner

Wireless Earbuds + 6 months of Eleven Labs Scale Tier

Best AI Application
1 winner

SkyTrek GPS Foldable Video Drone

Best Hardware Hack
1 winner

PCBway Vouchers ($50 each)

Best No-Code Project
1 winner

Amazon Eco Pop

Best Blockchains Application
1 winner

Razor Headphones

Best Use of Vercel
1 winner

Raspberry Pi Pico Starter Kit

Best Design Overall
1 winner

1-year Mobbin Pro + merch

[MLH] Best Use of Gemini API
1 winner

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?

[MLH] Best Use of ElevenLabs
1 winner

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!

[MLH] Best Use of Solana
1 winner

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!

[MLH] Best Use of DigitalOcean
1 winner

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!

[MLH] Best Use of MongoDB Atlas
1 winner

M5Stack IoT 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 M5Stack IoT Kit for you and each member of your team.

Devpost Achievements

Submitting to this hackathon could earn you:

Judges

Hack@Davidson

Hack@Davidson

Judging Criteria

  • Innovation & Creativity (Overall)
    How unique and creative is the project? Does it introduce new ideas, or take a unique approach to an existing problem?
  • Technical Complexity (Overall)
    How technically impressive is the project? Does it demonstrate strong programming, engineering, or integration skills?
  • Functionality & Execution (Overall)
    Does the project work as intended? Is it complete, well-implemented, and free of major bugs?
  • Impact & Usefulness (Overall)
    How meaningful is the project’s purpose? Does it solve a real problem or have a positive impact on users?
  • User Experience & Design (Overall)
    Is the project well-designed? Is the UI/UX intuitive, polished, and easy to use?
  • Best use of Vercel
    How effectively does the project use Vercel’s platform to increase user experience and development speed? How extensively are Vercel’s features used?
  • Best Hardware Application
    How effectively does the project use the given hardware components to solve a real problem? Does it demonstrate thoughtful integration between physical components and software?
  • Best No-Code Project
    How effective is the idea and vision behind the project? Does it demonstrate depth despite using no-code tools? Is the execution thoughtful and impactful?
  • Best AI Application
    How effectively does the project use AI? Does it solve a problem that is better solved with AI?
  • Best Blockchain Project
    How effectively does the project use blockchain technology to solve a real problem? Does it demonstrate clear value from decentralization, transparency, or trustless execution?
  • Best Use of Gemini API
    How effectively does the project use the Gemini API? Does it apply language understanding, reasoning, or content generation to improve the product?
  • Best Use of DigitalOcean
    How effectively does the project use DigitalOcean services for deployment, scaling, or infrastructure?
  • Best Design
    How effectively does the project use technologies like Mobbin to produce beautiful and accessible frontend applications.
  • Best Use of Solana
    How effectively does the project use Solana for fast, low-cost transactions? Does the use case depend on blockchain performance?
  • Best Use of ElevenLabs
    How effectively does the project use ElevenLabs to generate natural, expressive voice experiences?
  • Best Use of MongoDB Atlas
    How effectively does the project use MongoDB Atlas to store, manage, and scale application data?

Questions? Email the hackathon manager

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