About the challenge

HackedMerced XI is the eleventh iteration of UC Merced's annual hackathon, hosted by HackMerced! (Yeah, our event name is the same as our group name)

 

Create, Collaborate and enjoy our solarpunk vibes in this 36 hour event!

 

Get started

Tracks will be revealed during our opening ceremony!

Requirements

What to Build

You have the freedom to build anything you can think of that is correlated to one of our two tracks. It can be hardware, software, mechanical, artistic, and so on!

 

What to Submit

You will be required to post any code on DevPost. Due to the flexible nature of our hackathon, builds will be judged on a case by case basis. In general, we want an explanation of your work and a demo of how it works. 

 

For any questions, please make a ticket in our Discord or talk to an Event Organizer!

Hackathon Sponsors

Prizes

12 non-cash prizes
2TB External Hard Drive
1 winner

1st place, 2TB External Hard Drive 4x + MLH Winner Pins

JBL Tune 720BT
1 winner

1rst place, JBL Tune 720BT 4x + MLH Winner Pins

Sony Headphones
1 winner

2nd place, Sony Headphones 4x

Raspberri Pi Starter Kit
1 winner

2nd place, Raspberri Pi Starter Kit 4x

Mini Projector
1 winner

3rd place, Mini Projector 4x

Polaroid Camera
1 winner

3rd place, Polaroid Camera 4x

[MLH] Best Hack Built with Google Antigravity
1 winner

Google Swag Kits
Google Antigravity is an agentic development platform, evolving the IDE into the agent-first era.

Google Antigravity's Editor view offers tab autocompletion, natural language code commands, and a configurable, and context-aware configurable agent.

We want you to leverage Google Antigravity to build your hack this weekend. Enjoy free usage of the latest models through a free for students Google AI Pro plan.

[MLH] Best Use of Gemini API
1 winner

Google Swag Kits
It’s time to push the boundaries of what's possible with AI using Google Gemini. Check out the Gemini API to build AI-powered apps that make your friends say WHOA. So, what can Gemini do for your hackathon project?
Understand language like a human and build a chatbot that gives personalized advice
Analyze info like a supercomputer and create an app that summarizes complex research papers
Generate creative content like code, scripts, music, and more
Think of the possibilities… what will you build with the Google Gemini API this weekend?

[MLH] Best Use of ElevenLabs
1 winner

Wireless Earbuds
Deploy natural, human-sounding audio with ElevenLabs. Create realistic, dynamic, and emotionally expressive voices for any project, from interactive AI companions to narrated stories and voice-enabled apps. ElevenLabs will empower you to build rich, immersive experiences without the need for actors or complex audio production, using simply the power of AI.

Integrate fully autonomous audio experiences into your hack with ElevenLabs and give your project a voice, along with giving your team the chance to win some wireless earbuds!

[MLH] Best Use of Solana
1 winner

Ledger Nano S Plus
The world of development is evolving fast and Solana is leading the charge with a network built to handle all of your infrastructure needs. Forget high fees and slow confirmations, it’s time to build applications that are fast, efficient, and scalable.

Harness Solana's core advantages like blazing fast execution and near-zero transaction costs to make your hackathon ideas become real world projects. With Solana, the possibilities are endless.
Create a game, social app, or consumer product that relies on instant, high-frequency transactions.
Design a sophisticated trading, lending, or decentralized exchange (DEX).
Build a prototype for supply chain, identity, or payments that can handle massive, real-world volume.
Show us how you can innovate with Solana for a chance to win some cool prizes for you and each member of your team!

[MLH] Best Use of Snowflake API
1 winner

Raspberry Pi 4
Play with industry-leading LLMs on a single account using the Snowflake APIs. Adding AI capabilities into your application can be as simple as a single CURL command to Snowflake’s REST API.

Build customized applications, RAG powered chat bots, or embed AI-powered features into your app in half the time with half the hassle. Get started for free with a special, student 120-day Snowflake trial and check out this repository for an example of the Snowflake REST API in action.

[MLH] Best Use of MongoDB Atlas
1 winner

M5Stack IoT Kit
MongoDB Atlas takes the leading modern database and makes it accessible in the cloud! Get started with a $50 credit for students or sign up for the Atlas free forever tier (no credit card required). Along with a suite of services and functionalities, you'll have everything you need to manage all of your data, and you can get a headstart with free resources from MongoDB University! Build a hack using MongoDB Atlas for a chance to win a M5Stack IoT Kit for you and each member of your group.

Devpost Achievements

Submitting to this hackathon could earn you:

Judges

Rajesh Gupta

Rajesh Gupta
Head of Agentic AI - Skan Inc.

Harsha Sanjeeva

Harsha Sanjeeva
Senior Software Engineer - Cisco Systems Inc.

Shirley Luo

Shirley Luo
Co-Founder - Perfectorie Inc

Divya Jain

Divya Jain
ML/AI Technology and Product Leader

Sai Veda Prakash, Masetty

Sai Veda Prakash, Masetty
VP of Engineering at Zams

Parth Chandak

Parth Chandak
Creative Technologist @ Zoox

Pranjali Yadav

Pranjali Yadav
Data Scientist - Walmart

Judging Criteria

  • Innovation
    Assess the uniqueness of the project's approach, considering how it differs from existing ideas.
  • Technical Complexity
    How ambitious was the project. How did the team challenge themselves?
  • Execution
    Evaluate the effectiveness of the project's performance including code quality and functionality.
  • User Experience (UX)
    Evaluate the project's user experience design making it ease of use.
  • Impact
    Evaluate the project's potential to address community needs, considering its positive impact on individuals.
  • Adaptability
    Assess the project's ability to adapt to circumstances during development, considering its flexibility to any obstacles.
  • Pitch
    Assess the effectiveness of the team's technical presentation, including their ability to communicate complex ideas and demonstrate the project's technical aspects.

Questions? Email the hackathon manager

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Hackathon sponsors

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