Code, Design, and Compete at the iGEM 2023 Hackathon!
by Kamilė Vainiūtė
We’re excited to announce the first edition of the iGEM Hackathon at the 2023 Grand Jamboree! Please join us at this a unique event, and be part of an exciting community of programmers, designers, and tech enthusiasts working together to make a lasting impact on iGEM’s future.
At the iGEM 2023 Hackathon you’ll engage with mentors, participate in workshops, and collaborate with iGEM partner Karyo Studios, an entertainment studio founded to explore biotech through play. This is your chance to gain valuable skills, network with like-minded individuals, and potentially open doors to fantastic career opportunities.
In the Hackathon, we will ask you to form small groups of 3-5 people. If you don't have a teammate, you'll be able to find like-minded people either in our Slack channel (#jamboree-hackathon) or in a team match-making session right after the workshops.
When is the iGEM 2023 Hackathon?
The Hackathon will take place over two full days of the Grand Jamboree – starting right after the Grand Jamboree Opening Ceremony on November 2, and finishing after the last Judging session on November 4.
How do I join a Hackathon team?
In the Hackathon, we will ask you to form small groups of 3-5 people, preferably containing people with different backgrounds – designers, programmers, biologists, etc. If you don't have a teammate, don't worry! You'll be able to find like-minded people either in our Slack channel (#jamboree-hackathon) or in a team match-making session right after the workshops.
What are the challenges for the Hackathon?
Once your team is formed, you can choose from 4 available challenges:
The “Modern” iGEM Registry: re-invent the Registry of Standard Biological Parts to make it more useful, informative, and easy to navigate for future iGEM teams and the synthetic biology community,
Project Discovery: create a platform for discovering current and previous iGEM team projects,
Cellular Automata: work on a programming framework for an in-game alien chassis, together with Karyo Studios, and
Open Category: explore and implement your ideas on how to make iGEM even better.
The first three challenges will be explained in more depth during the workshops, which will happen right after the Hackathon Opening Session. During the workshops, dedicated mentors will explain the business and technical background behind each challenge, and you will have the opportunity to ask questions. You can also ask challenge-related questions at any time during the Hackathon through Slack or in person.
How is the Hackathon judged?
Once time is up, we'll ask you to provide links to your project repositories and create a short demo presentation of your project (maximum duration: 2 minutes). You don't need to create a professional video; a simple screen recording with a voice-over is enough. After that, our team of judges will review your results and pick the finalists who will be able to showcase their projects in more detail and answer any questions. Finally, a winner will be chosen!
What about my iGEM team obligations?
Don't be afraid about missing out on some hackathon activities due to your iGEM team obligations – every bit of information you might need to succeed will be recorded and published immediately.
How do I register for the iGEM 2023 Hackathon?
Registration is open now. Limited space is available, so we encourage you to register here today!
Interested in joining?
Register for the Hackathon!
Let's come together to build a more dynamic and modern iGEM community! The steps are simple: register for the Hackathon, then grab your laptop and head on over to the iGEM 2023 Hackathon at Grand Jamboree. Can’t wait to see you there!
