Catch up on this conversation with Microsoft hackathon organizers and winners.
By
Stephanie Rochon
Content Marketing Manager at Devpost
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Hackathons transform innovative ideas into reality. Microsoft has been running hackathons on Devpost for nearly a decade to inspire innovation, grow its developer community, and empower devs to bring their ideas to life.
Devpost CEO, Brandon Kessler, was joined by the organizers and winners of Microsoft hackathons as they shared their strategies and secrets to successful competitions.
Malena Lopez-Sotelo, Lead AI Product Marketing Manager, Communities GTM
Ricky Diep, Product Marketing Manager for Azure Data and AI
Francesca Bassa, Product Marketing Manager, Databases and AI
Jason Hedman and JP Higgins, co-creators of ChatEDU and winners of Microsoft’s Generative AI and AI Classroom hackathons
Questions answered in the webinar:
Why do you run hackathons?
Can you tell us about the last hackathon you ran? What were participants asked to do?
How important is AI to your company and why?
What do you look for in a winning project?
What are your tips for hackathon participants or anything you can share that they should avoid doing?
Can you tell us about the inspiration behind your winning hackathon project?
Why did you enter these hackathons? What’s in it for you?
What would be your advice to others who are building a hackathon project?
What are your tips for showcasing your project?
Do you have any advice for people nervous about joining a hackathon project team?
Is a good pitch deck better than a good software product?
Can the organizers share advice on running a virtual hackathon for the first time?
What would you say to people who are considering joining a hackathon?
Why do you run hackathons?
Malena: “Microsoft's mission is to empower everyone to achieve more. Hackathons help us get our communities to get to that point. How do we learn skills? How do we change the world with our applications? How do we apply all of the different resources and tools with other people to help bring those solutions to life?”
Nina: “While I was working on hackathons, I was in a role to engage with developers and developer communities, and get them excited and exposed to the Microsoft technology. So the two reasons [I ran hackathons] were as a way to get the community to use some of Microsoft’s cloud-based AI and newest tech.
Second, part of my personal passion is how we can use technology to address some ways to approach the social good. So, we had a series around AI for accessibility, AI for responsible AI, and for social justice.”
Ricky: “Hackathons are a really great way to spotlight and showcase what the community is building with Azure. A lot of the times we get to showcase the work that you guys have done—internally and externally as well. And it makes us super happy to see all the creative and endless possibilities that you can build on Azure.”
Francesca: “I think that hackathons are just the most amazing way to generate new ideas, to have fun, and to really test out some of the products that we tend to work on on a daily basis, but we don't really think about how they apply in the real world.”
Can you tell us about the inspiration for your winning project?
Jason: “We were students when we were making the project and we originally built it for ourselves. We ended up finding that a lot of our peers liked what we were making and had suggestions for what we could add. And eventually, we ended up with a product that people started using at our school and schools across the globe.”
Why did you enter these hackathons?
JP: “You can only benefit from doing hackathons and it gives you something [to work toward] with a clear directed goal. Even better, especially for students, there are very few opportunities outside of hackathons to have an excuse to sit down and build something for yourself. And it's not just about the competition. This is your portfolio and you keep it forever.”
Watch the full recording below
Catch up on the Q&A
There were so many great questions during the webinar that the panelists couldn’t answer them all live! Get the answers (and a lot of bonus tips) here thanks to Stefanie Maccarone, Head of Project Management and Customer Success at Devpost.
Can you share tips on how to manage or enable team formation?
Team building is one of the most common topics for both hackathon participants and organizers. While there’s no single right way that works best for everyone, here are a few key tips that we suggest for online competitions:
Organizers:
Keep the options open. Rather than enforce team sizes, let individuals or teams of any size participate. If you are concerned about prizes like swag for each team member, simply limit the number of prizes (i.e., Swag for up to 4 team members). Virtual hackathon teams range in size, however, the most common size we see submit are between 1-4 people. Developers participate solo all the time in online hackathons.
Provide channels for team building to occur. We suggest a chat channel to increase all engagement. Make a #teambuilding space in yours to encourage more interaction.
Make use of the channels. If your hackathon organizer is hosting a team building event or chat space, join it and speak up! If you set your status on the hackathon as “Looking for teammates” you’ll have a chance to pitch an idea or your skills in your bio. Ask for the types of skills you need on your team, share your ideal working hours and time zone, and keep checking back for new participants.
Don’t wait. Half the fun of a hackathon is learning new technology and individuals win hackathons all the time. Use some of our project planning guides and begin working on your own.
Select your location on your Devpost portfolio and consider participating in an in-person hackathon near you. These events can ease you into participating online and usually come with swag and snacks!
Check the hackathon eligibility. Depending on your age or location, you may not be eligible for a particular hackathon.
Join in whether you feel ready or not. There’s no harm in starting a hackathon project and not finishing it. We would love to see you cross the finish line, but just trying something new is an achievement.
Ask lots of questions. If you join a hackathon with a chat space, office hours, or even the discussion forum on their Devpost page, ask away! There are usually quick start guides, experienced developers, and other resources to help you.
Join Devpost’s Discord. Engage with other like-minded hackers, ask questions, and hear about many of our new hackathons as soon as we launch them.
Any strategic tips for winning the hackathon?
The panelists provided great insights in the webinar and we wanted to share additional tips and resources:
Read the site thoroughly before you start your project. The required tools, judging criteria, and resources can guide you. Did the sponsor include inspiration or problem statements? Does the hackathon offer bonus prizes for a specific track or API?
Plan out your demo video. We know not everyone is a video-making pro, but it’s worth your time. Cover the key topics and how they relate to the specific hackathon: the idea and the problem it solves, the key features you built, and future potential. Judges will see a lot of projects and the demos really help you stand out. Read these 6 tips for making a winning demo video.
Please don’t wait until the last minute to submit! Give yourself some time to proofread, add markdown, and sell your idea. If you submit at least a day or two before the deadline of a hackathon managed by Devpost, we’ll do our best to check to make sure it’s not missing anything while you still have time to fix it.
Remember that winning isn’t the only benefit of participating. We know everyone puts time and effort into their projects and not winning can be disappointing. Most people don’t win their first hackathon but learning new skills, making new friends, and crossing the finish line are worth celebrating.
Feeling inspired?
Find your next great hackathon challenge by checking out all of the open hackathons on Devpost! If you're a hackathon organizer, talk to our team about how to make your next hackathon a success.
