General

Can I participate solo, on a team, or as an organization?

Yes to all three. You can enter as an individual, a team, or an organization.

If you're entering as a team or organization, you'll need to appoint one person (the Representative) who meets the eligibility requirements to represent, act, and submit on your behalf. Organizations must also be organized or incorporated in a country or territory that supports OpenAI's API services. Any cash prize is paid to the individual, the team's Representative, or the organization, depending on how you entered.

Is there a limit on team size? 

No cap on team size. Build with as many teammates as makes sense for your project. Keep in mind: a few individual prize items (like the free ChatGPT Pro account or swag) may only cover a specific number of team members. That's a limit on the prize, not on your team.

Can I work on a project I already started? 

While existing projects are eligible, new projects are highly encouraged. If your project existed before August 25th, it must be meaningfully extended with WebMCP after the Submission Period starts — WebMCP work added before that date doesn't count. You'll need to clearly document what's new vs. pre-existing.

Do judges test my project? 

They may, but they're not required to — they can judge based on your description and repo alone. Since there's no video, make sure your live URL and README are as clear as possible.

I’ve never built with WebMCP before. Can I still compete? 

Yes. WebMCP is an emerging open standard, and developers at every experience level are welcome. Start with the specification, developer documentation, and example apps.

Do I need a private repo option? 

No — unlike some hackathons, this one requires a public repository with a visible open-source license. There's no private-repo-plus-shared-access path here.

Setup & Tools

Do I need an OpenAI account, Codex, or credits to build? 

No specific hosting provider or paid development tool is required. You can use Codex to build, or another coding agent of your choice. You can test your app using ChatGPT’s in-app browser or Google Chrome with WebMCP enabled.

Which browser do I need? 

Use ChatGPT’s in-app browser, which supports WebMCP out of the box, or Google Chrome 149+ with WebMCP enabled through its experimental flag

Do I have to pay to host my project? 

No. You're free to host wherever works for you: ChatGPT Sites, Cloudflare, Vercel, Render, Netlify, Shopify, or any other provider. Cloudflare, Vercel, Netlify, and Render all have solid free tiers that cost nothing to build on. One exception: ChatGPT Sites requires a paid ChatGPT plan and isn't currently available in the UK, EEA, or Switzerland, so if that's not workable for you, one of the free options above does the same job.

Submissions

What do I need to submit? 

A working, hosted project; a project description explaining the fit for WebMCP and what it enables; a public code repository with an open-source license; and a short demo video.

Can judges build my project from scratch to test it? 

They’re not required to. Make sure your live URL works in ChatGPT’s in-app browser or Google Chrome with WebMCP enabled, and provide clear testing instructions.

I have a question the FAQ didn't answer. Where do I go? 

The OpenAI Discord, or post on the Discussion Board.

Does my project have to be public? 

Your code repository must be public and include an open-source license. Your live app may require authentication if you provide judges with the necessary credentials and testing instructions.

Do I need a demo video?

A <3-minute demo video is required. Judges will also visit your live URL directly to see how the app works.

The demo video must include a clear demo of your project functioning and with audio that covers what you built and how you used WebMCP

Can I edit my submission after the deadline?

No. Before the deadline, edit and save drafts as many times as you like. Once the Submission Period closes on September 3rd at 1:00 PM PT, don't touch anything: not your Devpost submission, not your repo, not your live site, until winners are announced. Editing any of it during judging can put your eligibility at risk. If you want to keep building, fork your repo (make a separate copy under your own account) and work there instead, leaving the submitted version untouched.

Using AI to build your project

AI assistants are welcome — judges care about the final project and the real problem it solves, not how the code was typed.

🟢 Do use AI to:

• scaffold, debug, and iterate faster
• draft and tighten your README and project description
• brainstorm edge cases

🔺 Don't use AI to:

• name your project (pick something specific — it's the first thing judges see)
• describe your project in vague, generic termsfake or overstate what's actually running