Hoobit Ideathon 2025

A global stage for students to turn ideas into blueprints for impact. 🌍

Go check out our site: ideathon.hoobit.org

Join our discord: https://discord.gg/cZJXpj8WxK

What it is ✨

A three-week, online student ideathon where high-school and university builders transform real problems into clear, feasible solution plans. Not a coding marathon—this is about insight, users, and a plan others can build.

Theme 🔓

Friction Points: Redesigning Systems That Don't Serve Us

Every day, we hit systems that waste our time, betray our trust, or lock us out. Bad transit apps. Fake job posts. Government forms from 1997. Your challenge: pick one friction point that affects real people, and design a tech solution that makes it flow.

This could be digital trust (rental scams, fake internships), civic UX (government services, public forms), transit & mobility (safety, accessibility), access barriers (healthcare, finance), or any system that genuinely fails people.

You'll define who's affected, why it matters, and how your idea could move from concept → MVP.

What makes it special 💡

  • Ideas first, impact next — we value clarity over buzzwords.

  • Student-led, globally open — collaborate across borders, solve local or global challenges.

  • Portfolio-ready outcomes — polished concept docs people can actually compare and share.

  • Many prizes to take home — multiple categories, partner perks, and spotlights so more teams get recognized.

Dates (CET) 📅

  • Kickoff & theme reveal: Mon, Nov 24

  • Submission deadline: Sun, Dec 15

  • Judging: Dec 16–18

  • Winners showcase: Fri, Dec 19

Requirements

  • Format

    • PDF only (no Word/PPT)

    • English only

    • Length: 2–4 pages for the main document

    Originality & credits

    • Create your work during the ideathon window.

    • Cite/credit any research, data, images, frameworks, or prior art you use (links are fine).

    • AI disclosure: list any AI tools used and how (e.g., brainstorming, diagramming). The PDF must be in your own words.

    What your PDF must include (in this order)

    1. 👤 Front matter (top of page 1)

      • Team name & contact emails for all team members

      • Members (first names OK), age range (e.g., 16–18 / 19–24) & education level (HS / university)

      • Country/region

    2. 🧩 Problem statement

      • Who is affected (be specific)

      • Where/when it happens (context)

      • A stat, quote, or source that shows this is real

    3. 🎯 Purpose

      • Why this matters to your users (and to you)

    4. 💡 Proposed solution

      • One-sentence summary (“We help ___ do ___ by ___”)

      • Key features or user stories (3–5 bullets max)

    5. 🆚 What’s new

      • What people do today / existing alternatives

      • What’s different or smarter about your approach (1–2 lines)

    6. 🛠 Feasibility & MVP

      • The smallest version you’d build first (MVP)

      • Next steps: 3–5 concrete steps with who/what

      • Risks & assumptions: top 2 and how you’d de-risk

    7. 📏 Success metric

      • One measurable outcome for your first test (e.g., “70% complete X in ≤2 minutes”)

    8. 🔒 Ethics & inclusion

      • Note privacy/accessibility considerations or potential misuse and how you’d handle them

    9. 📚 References / Credits

      • Short list of links for any data, articles, images, or prior work

      • AI tools disclosure: which tools and the role they played

Hackathon Sponsors

Prizes

11 non-cash prizes
1st
1 winner

2-year VIP CodeCrafters.io membership(for each team member $720)
Each team member gets .xyz domain($60)
1x AoPS Coupons ($25)
Official 1st Place Winner Certificates – Hoobit Ideathon 2025

2nd
1 winner

1-year VIP CodeCrafters.io membership(for each team member $360)
Each team member gets .xyz domain($60)
1x AoPS Coupons ($25)
Official 2nd Place Winner Certificates – Hoobit Ideathon 2025

3rd
1 winner

6-months VIP CodeCrafters.io membership(for each team member $180)
Each team member gets .xyz domain($60)
1x AoPS Coupons ($25)
Official 3rd Place Winner Certificates – Hoobit Ideathon 2025

4th
1 winner

Each team member gets .xyz domain($60)
1x AoPS Coupons ($25)
Official 4th Place Winner Certificates – Hoobit Ideathon 2025

5th
1 winner

Each team member gets .xyz domain($60)
Official 5th Place Winner Certificates – Hoobit Ideathon 2025

Top 100 Participants
100 winners

Top 100 Participants receive custom .xyz domains!
Official Participation Certificates - Hoobit Ideathon 2025

Most Impactful Award
1 winner

Each team member gets .xyz domain($60)
Certificate awarded to the project that made the biggest real-world impact at the Hoobit Ideathon 2025.

Most Innovative Award
1 winner

Each team member gets .xyz domain($60)
Certificate awarded to the project that was the most innovative at the Hoobit Ideathon 2025.

Most Coherent Award
1 winner

Each team member gets .xyz domain($60)
Certificate awarded to the project with the clearest vision and explanation at the Hoobit Ideathon 2025.

Free Drops in Discord Server
50 winners

An opportunity to win free .xyz domains just by participating and joining the community!

Global Builder Bundle (All Participants)
1 winner

By joining the discord server you automatically qualify for free LLM api & premium subscriptions worth $12000. All you have to do is join this global community :)

Devpost Achievements

Submitting to this hackathon could earn you:

Judges

Reach out to be a judge

Reach out to be a judge
[email protected]

Pranitha Ramaswamy

Pranitha Ramaswamy
Computer science engineering student; former software developer intern at AlEgION.

Misbah Khair

Misbah Khair
Oracle HCM Solutions Architect | BCS & IEEE Senior Member

Sai Karthik Baira

Sai Karthik Baira
Information Systems Business Analyst | Quality & Compliance

Vikas Kumar Mittal

Vikas Kumar Mittal
Principal Software Engineer (Walmart Tech)

Ying Yang

Ying Yang
AI Product & Growth Expert

Judging Criteria

  • Impact & Relevance — 25%
    Meaningful problem, clearly defined beneficiaries, plausible path to real-world benefit.
  • User Understanding & Problem Clarity — 20%
    Clear users/context, concrete pain points, specific examples or observations.
  • Feasibility & MVP Path — 20%
    Realistic MVP, concrete next steps, key risks/assumptions and de-risking plan.
  • Originality & Insight — 15%
    Fresh angle or clear differentiation vs. current approaches, with sound reasoning.
  • Clarity & Structure — 10%
    Concise, well-organized, easy to follow; visuals only where they add clarity.
  • Evidence, Citations & Ethics — 10%
    Proper credits/sources and thoughtful handling of privacy, accessibility, and misuse.

Questions? Email the hackathon manager

Tell your friends

Hackathon sponsors

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.