Hexbear | Devpost

After donating food
Spell history plus ranks
Front page, showing three options
Options to help you save energy (co2)
Energy Reader
Food bank
Account

About Hexbear

Inspiration Hexbear was inspired by global warming and the real damage it’s already causing—hotter summers, stronger storms, and the growing feeling that “small actions don’t matter.” We wanted to build something that makes climate action feel easy, motivating, and fun, so people actually stick with it. That’s why we turned sustainability into magic: instead of a boring checklist, users “cast spells” that create real-world community and climate impact. What it does Hexbear is a magical climate action app where users earn GHG points by completing eco-friendly “spells”:

Recyclify Reveal (Main Spell): Scan an item, get recyclability guidance, then confirm recycling (optionally with photo proof) to earn points tied to estimated CO₂ saved.

WattSaver Charm: Log energy usage or energy-saving actions and earn points for reducing emissions.

Food Rescue Portal: Find nearby places to donate surplus food and earn points for preventing food waste and helping the community.

How we built it

Frontend: React Native with Expo for fast cross-platform development

Backend: Supabase for:

Auth (user accounts)

Postgres database (profiles, points, action history)

Storage (photo uploads)

Edge Functions (serverless processing and logic)

Image analysis (scan spell): OCR / vision-based detection using Google Cloud Vision API (or a lightweight recognition approach depending on the item)

Animations: Magic effects using LottieFiles assets for a polished demo

Challenges we faced

Our biggest challenge was a major backend switch mid-build. We originally planned to use DigitalOcean, but the credit links weren’t working when we were ready to start coding. That forced us to re-adjust the entire plan quickly. We pivoted to Supabase so we could still ship a working product within hackathon time—without losing authentication, storage, or database features.

What we learned

How to pivot fast when a core dependency fails (and still deliver a clean demo).

How much smoother development gets when auth + database + storage + serverless functions live in one platform.

How important it is to balance a fun theme with trustworthy impact numbers (so the app is magical and credible).

What’s next

Improve scan accuracy (better OCR + confidence scoring + smarter fallbacks)

Add community challenges (dorms/teams saving CO₂ together)

Expand recycling guidance by location (since rules vary by city)

Add verification options for higher-value actions (like donations)