Read before you register

Participation guideline

Eligibility, team rules, tracks, timeline, submission requirements, judging criteria, and code of conduct - everything you need before you register.

28-30 July 2026Online · BangladeshTeams of 1-3
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Section 01Who can participate
  • Developers, software engineers, hardware and embedded enthusiasts, UI/UX designers, cybersecurity practitioners, data scientists, students, and independent innovators.
  • Open to Bangladeshis anywhere in the world. You do not need to be living in Bangladesh.
  • At least one member of each team must currently reside in Bangladesh. Everyone else may take part from abroad.
  • No age restriction. Anyone can take part.
  • No prior hackathon experience required.
  • Organising committee members and judges are not eligible to compete.
Section 02Team rules
Team size
1-3 members (solo entries welcome)
Composition
Cross-institution teams allowed
Team lead
One member registers for the team and is the single point of contact
Multiple teams
A person may join only one team
Roster lock
No changes after registration closes on 28 July
Section 03Tracks

Every team selects exactly one track at registration. The bullets under each track are examples meant to show the range of what fits, not a list of the only projects allowed. If your idea belongs to the track, build it.

Track A. Crisis Tech

Technology that keeps people alive, informed, and connected when normal infrastructure fails.

Example directions, not a checklist

  • Communication without internet: mesh networking, Bluetooth/Wi-Fi Direct, LoRa, peer-to-peer relay, store-and-forward messaging
  • Feature-phone and button-phone services: SMS, USSD, IVR, voice-first interfaces
  • Low-resource operation: offline-first apps, small footprints, low-bandwidth sync, long battery life
  • Disaster response: flood and earthquake early warning, shelter and relief coordination, missing-person registries, damage mapping
  • Protest and civic safety: emergency broadcast, safe check-in, verified information distribution, censorship-resistant publishing
  • Resilient hardware: solar or hand-crank power, ruggedised sensors, community relay nodes

Nothing here is required, and nothing here is the limit. If your idea belongs to this track, build it, even if it looks nothing like the list above.

Dedicated to the spirit of Jogajog, which kept people connected during the internet shutdowns of the July Revolution.

Track B. Spirit of July

Any project that upholds, documents, or advances the ideals of the July Revolution: justice, truth, courage, and civic dignity.

Example directions, not a checklist

  • Archiving and preserving testimony, media, and records of the movement
  • Misinformation detection, fact-checking, and source verification
  • Transparency, accountability, and open-data tools for citizens
  • Memorial, educational, and storytelling experiences, including games and interactive media
  • Civic participation, rights awareness, and access-to-justice tools
  • Support platforms for the injured, the bereaved, and affected families

Nothing here is required, and nothing here is the limit. If your idea belongs to this track, build it, even if it looks nothing like the list above.

Section 04Timeline

Fully online. The core build is a continuous 72-hour sprint. All times are Bangladesh Standard Time (UTC+6).

  1. 26 July

    Registration opens

  2. 28 July, 23:59

    Registration closes

  3. 28 July, 00:00

    Build sprint begins

  4. 31 July, 11:59 am

    Submission deadline

  5. 30 July to 1 August, 23:59

    Social media engagement window

  6. 31 July to 1 August

    Judging

  7. 2 August

    Results announced

The submission deadline is hard. Late submissions are not accepted.

Section 05What you can build

Anything. There is no restricted stack.

  • Form factor: mobile app, web app, desktop app, CLI, game, hardware/IoT device, bot, browser extension, or a hybrid
  • Language and framework: entirely your choice
  • Third-party services: open-source libraries, public APIs, cloud services, and pre-trained models are permitted, with attribution
  • AI assistance: allowed - disclose which tools you used in your submission
  • Hardware: if a live demo is impractical, a working prototype video plus schematics is acceptable
Section 06Code & originality rules
  1. All core work must be produced during the 28-30 July sprint. Pre-existing boilerplate, design systems, and open-source dependencies are fine; a pre-built product with a new coat of paint is not.
  2. You may bring a prior idea, but the implementation must start during the sprint. Declare any prior work at registration.
  3. Plagiarised code, purchased submissions, and re-submissions of past hackathon projects mean immediate disqualification.
  4. Repositories must be public at submission time and include an open-source licence.
  5. Commit history is part of the evidence. Do not squash the entire project into one commit at the deadline.
Section 07Submission

All submissions go through the event website, https://hackathon2026.jrabd.org. Nothing submitted by email or social media is counted.

A submission is complete only when it includes:

  • Project title and one-line pitch (max 25 words)
  • Track - Crisis Tech or Spirit of July
  • Problem statement - who is affected, and when it matters (max 200 words)
  • Solution description - what you built and how it works (max 400 words)
  • Public repository link with a README covering setup and run instructions
  • Demo video - 5 minutes maximum, unlisted YouTube or Drive link, Bangla or English
  • Live link or installable build - deployed URL, APK, or binary, if applicable
  • Slide deck - 6-10 slides, PDF
  • Tech stack and third-party components, including AI tools used
  • Public Facebook post link (see Section 8)
  • Team member list with roles

Incomplete submissions are not judged.

Section 08Social media engagement

Part of this hackathon is getting your idea in front of people, and in front of other builders. Two things are counted: engagement on your project’s Facebook post, and GitHub stars on your repository. Together they carry 20% of your final score, split evenly at 10% each.

How it works

  1. After submitting, publish one public Facebook post about your project.
  2. The post must include: project name, track, a one-line description, your demo video or a link to it, and the hashtag #JulyHackathon2026.
  3. Tag or link the official event page so organisers can verify the post.
  4. Submit the post URL through the website. Only the URL submitted through the website is counted. One post per team.
  5. The post must remain public and unedited in reach settings until 1 August, 23:59.
  6. Your repository must be public and its URL submitted through the website, so stars can be counted.

How it is scored

  • Facebook, 10%. Reactions and shares on the submitted post, measured at 1 August, 23:59.
  • GitHub, 10%. Stars on the submitted repository, measured at the same moment.
  • Both are scored relative to the best in your track: the highest count sets the ceiling and every other team is scored proportionally against it.
  • Comments, views, forks, watchers, and engagement on any other post or repository are not counted. A repository that is private, deleted, or renamed at the deadline scores zero on the GitHub component.

Rules

  • Buying reactions, shares, or followers, using bot or farm accounts, or running paid boosts is prohibited and results in a zero on this component and possible disqualification.
  • Buying stars, using bot or throwaway GitHub accounts, and star-for-star exchange rings are prohibited on the same terms. Reaction-swap groups and mass-tagging spam are treated the same way.
  • Organisers may audit engagement patterns and will discount clearly inauthentic activity.
  • Posts that violate the Code of Conduct score zero regardless of engagement.
Section 09Judging criteria

25%

Impact & relevance to track

Does it solve a real problem for real people? Does it belong in its track?

20%

Technical execution

Does it work? Is the engineering sound and non-trivial?

20%

Public engagement

Facebook reactions and shares, plus GitHub stars, 10% each (Section 8)

15%

Innovation & originality

Is the approach genuinely new, or a sharper take on a known problem?

10%

Feasibility & resilience

Can it run in the field - low bandwidth, low power, low-end devices, hostile conditions?

10%

Presentation & usability

Is the demo clear? Is the interface usable by the intended user?

Track A projects are additionally assessed on whether they degrade gracefully- how well they function with no internet, no electricity, or on a button phone. Judges’ decisions are final. Scores are not published individually.

Section 10Prizes

The total prize pool is 60,000 BDT, sponsored by Omukk, title sponsor of the hackathon.

Subscriptions are provided by Poridhi, who make the Puku editor and CLI. Taking part is enough to receive one, so a team does not have to place to come away with something.

1st place

15,000 BDT

In each track.

2nd place

10,000 BDT

In each track.

3rd place

5,000 BDT

In each track.

Every placing is awarded twice, once in Crisis Tech and once in Spirit of July, so the three placings come to 30,000 BDT a track and 60,000 BDT in total.

Every participant

1 month

Puku CLI and editor subscription, for everyone taking part.

Top 3 teams in each track

6 months

Puku CLI and editor subscription. Awarded per track, so Crisis Tech and Spirit of July each have their own top three.

  • The top three are decided by the scores in Section 09, per track. Crisis Tech and Spirit of July are judged separately, so each has its own top three.
  • Subscriptions are issued to the email addresses on the registration, so keep them reachable after the sprint.
  • More prizes are being confirmed and will be announced here before the sprint begins.
Section 11Intellectual property
  • Teams retain full ownership of everything they build.
  • By submitting, you grant the organisers a non-exclusive right to showcase your project name, description, screenshots, and demo video in event coverage and promotional material.
  • Projects must be released under an OSI-approved open-source licence (MIT, Apache 2.0, GPL, or similar). Track A projects are strongly encouraged to use a permissive licence so the work can be picked up and deployed quickly in an emergency.
Section 12Code of conduct

This event is dedicated to the memory of Jahiduzzaman Tanvin and Sheikh Ashabul Yamin. We hold ourselves to that standard.

  • Treat every participant, judge, and volunteer with respect. Harassment, discrimination, and abuse in any form result in removal.
  • Do not submit projects that promote violence, target individuals or communities, or spread disinformation.
  • Projects handling personal data must state what they collect and why. Do not build surveillance tooling.
  • Report concerns by direct message to an organiser on the Discord. Reports are handled confidentially.
Section 13Support

The Discord is where everything happens: questions, announcements, mentor help and submissions. Ask there rather than anywhere else, and you will get an answer fastest.

Section 14FAQ
Can I participate solo?

Yes, teams are 1 to 3 members.

Do I need a team before registering?

No. A team can be one person, so registering on your own is a complete entry and a solo team is judged on the same footing. If you would rather find teammates first, ask on the event Discord.

Is there a registration fee?

No. Taking part is free.

Can I use an existing open-source project as a base?

Yes, as a dependency. Not as your submission.

Can we submit in Bangla?

Yes. Video and deck may be in Bangla or English. README should be in English or bilingual.

Can one team enter both tracks?

No - one team, one submission, one track.

Judging ends 1 August but the social window closes 1 August too. Why?

Judges score the project on 31 July - 1 August; the engagement component is computed after the window closes at 23:59 and added to the total. Results follow on 2 August.