hackUST is an annual hackathon at HKUST since 2014 which aims at cultivating student innovation and entrepreneurship through providing a platform for both technical and non-technical students with like-minded interest to tackle problems with creative ideas and solutions.
The hackUST is more than a platform for the students to tackle problems but a platform with a pool of talents with entrepreneurial mindset who are potential candidates sought after by organizations which are looking for new recruits and creative solutions adoptable for their operations.
With 6 years of development, the hackUST + hardUST has become the largest hackathon held in the Greater China region [News]. It is also one of the most sought after hackathon event by university students around the world.
Building your solution within 24 hours is definitely an unique experience!
Launch of the hackUST 2021
Deadline for enrollment
1. Kick-off Ceremony (online)
2. Confirmation of acceptance of enrollment
3. Announcement of themes for the hackUST 2021
Final Presentation by the Finalists, Announcement of Finalists + Presentation by Finalists
Deadline for submission of Entries
Workshops and Mentoring
For details, please check it here:
*Once enrolment is confirmed, applicants will have access to the hackUST Matching Platform, which allows individual applicants to form teams or join existing teams after confirmation of enrollment. Likewise, existing teams may search for additional members from this Platform as well.
Our earth is plagued by environmental problems that deplete natural resources and strain livelihoods. Pollution, as one of the biggest environmental problems happening and affecting livelihoods all over the world, is causing different degree of serious health issues to human being and economic consequences to societies.
With advance in technologies, can you develop a viable and justifiable solution that can greatly improve and solve the problem?
In many cities, many offline services have been enhanced (or suppressed) by the power of mobile internet. Smart travel with enhanced itinerary planning and location-detection and recommendations prior to one’s travel is getting more and popular. It is expected there will still be huge challenges for both individuals, travel agents, as well as tourism boards, even when cross broader travel is to be allowed and resumed.
You are to prepare and develop an APP with anything that you consider applicable to quickly bring back the travel industry and individual’s interest in travelling.
What does the food and beverage industry look like in the next normal? While dine-in is expected to rebound, the habit of eating out of store is here to stay. Whether it is ordering online, picking up from stores or delivery, how do we make every customer experience remain great or even better every single time?
You are to develop a viable solution to meet customers’ expectation of hygiene or even go beyond that. And to inject agility into a caterer’s operations and leverage data to enable fast response to shifts between dine-in and out-of-store orders.
The latest edition of the Women in the Workplace survey indicates nearly 500 women surveyed, nearly 90% note they are facing challenges when it comes to financial, familial and professional responsibilities.
A recent United Nations study cautioned that COVID-19 could undo decades of meaningful progress around gender equity and more than 60 percent of working women surveyed concur. One survey respondent noted, “Women are a vital portion of the workforce. They often bring new viewpoints to male dominated fields. However, women shoulder the burden when children cannot go to school. Often, it is a woman who needs to take time off of work or quit their job to take care of kids or sick family.”
A Bureau of Labor Statistics report showed that since February 2020, women account for 55 percent of all jobs lost. For those who are self-employed or own their own business, the pandemic has created an additional layer of challenges. An independent architect commented that business has halted and “additionally, I have had to take care of all the housework, so the hours dedicated to new projects are each day more limited.”
Your team is to develop an innovative solution to address this social challenge facing female, whether they are in the workplace or as housewives.
During the pandemic, contactless services have become a necessary improvement to prevent the pandemic. The original content and service provision in communities and homes, such as notification for express delivery, elevator switches, access control, and retrieving / pressing of remote controls, etc., are expected to be done in a contactless manner to reduce the chance of infection.
Using voice to complete contactless services and interconnection with peripheral devices is one of the best choices.
Aging is becoming a problem for social development. Elderlies are in need of accompany, first aid, smart control for home equipment. However, due to the fact of living alone and limitation associated with physical capability, etc., they could not obtain the needed support and service in a timely manner.
How can the use of intelligent voice enabled technology solves the problem facing the elderly?
Additional Resources for Xiaoai Open Platform:
Full version about submission requirements, rules and regulations are available here:
HK$50,000 Cash prize + Certificate* + Deloitte's Internship** + Direct entry to Round 2 of the HKUST-Sino One-Million-Dollar Entrepreneurship Competition 2021
HK$30,000 Cash prize + Certificate* + Direct entry to Round 2 of the HKUST-Sino One-Million-Dollar Entrepreneurship Competition 2021
HK$20,000 Cash prize + Certificate* + Direct entry to Round 2 of the HKUST-Sino One-Million-Dollar Entrepreneurship Competition 2021
HK$20,000 Cash prize + Pitching opportunity to Jardine Restaurant Group for incubator funding
RMB15,000 Cash Prize + Certificate* + Internship @ Xiaomi***
HK$10,000 Cash prize + Fail Certificate*
HK$10,000 Cash prize + Certificate*
HK$10,000 Cash prize + Certificate*
HK$10,000 Cash prize + Certificate*
HK$2,000 Cash prize + Certificate*
HK$5,000 Cash prize + Certificate*
HK$5,000 Cash prize + Certificate*
Notes
1. Champion, First Runner-up and Second Runner-up will be granted to direct entry to Round 2 of the HKUST-Sino One-Million-Dollar Entrepreneurship Competition 2021 (Terms and Conditions apply)
2. FAiL: First Attempt in Learning
3. Judge Special Mention Awards: to be selected from all entries other than the Finalists
* All Certificates will be issued by HKUST Entrepreneurship Center with Deloitte Digital and AWS logos
** Members of the Champion will be offered internship places at Deloitte's "Consulting Digital Team" to be held in Hong Kong SAR with a monthly internship allowance of HK$8100 each x up to 3 months (subjects to passing a selection process to be conducted by Deloitte), Cash value total HK$121,500.
*** Subjects to passing a selection process to be conducted by Xiaomi
**** Details will be provided to the female hackers upon acceptance to the hackUST2021.
HKUST reserves the right to make the final interpretation of the above and final arrangement for the event.
up to USD 100 free credits on AWS Console (USD100 for new AWS Console members and USD50 for existing AWS Console members)*
500 pieces of AWS souvenir (for those to be accepted for the hackUST 2021)*
An exclusive AWS Educate registration link will be provided only for hackUST participants to sign up for AWS’s free credits.
Notes
* An exclusive AWS Educate registration link will be provided only for hackUST participants to sign up for AWS’s free credits and souvenirs
HKUST reserves the right to make the final interpretation of the above and final arrangement for the event.
Chief
PIC of Overall Coordination
Logistics Team
Logistics Team
Logistics Team
Marketing Team
Website Team
Website Team
Marketing Team
Marketing Team
hackUST 2021 is a online competition in which talents (including students and alumni) from different backgrounds (including software engineers, business students, designers and among others) and universities can mingle, learn and build cool stuff together!
No, the official language of the hackathon is english.
Any students studying in Associate/ Bachelor/ Master / PhD programs or recent graduate can join hackUST! It doesn’t matter whether you are a computer science major or a business major, anyone who is passionate about building cool stuff can join.
hackUST is designed to be beginner friendly. We'll have a spectrum of workshops during the event as well as mentors on site to teach you new skills and guide you towards your first hack.
We have an hackUST Matching Platform, which allows individual applicants to form teams or join existing teams after confirmation of enrollment. Likewise, existing teams may search for additional members from this Platform as well.
No. Working on your hack before the event will disqualify you from winning any prizes at hackUST. You can think of ideas, as well as use open source code, frameworks, and libraries.