Check out hackphs.tech for registration + more info!
About the challenge
hackPHS hosts over 300 high school students from across New Jersey to collaborate, innovate, and create in a 24-hour, in-person student organized hackathon based at Princeton High School. Whether you're a complete beginner or an experienced hacker, hackPHS will have something for you! hackPHS's goal is to provide a space for young and eager minds to collaborate with others, form new bonds, and create meaningful projects.
What makes us special?
Being double the length of a standard high school hackathon, hackPHS gives participants a greater opportunity to develop a quality project. Being near the library and Princeton University, participants can not only take part in a overnight hackathon but also take a break in gentle environment of campus.
Schedule
Saturday 11/1
| Time | Event | Location |
| 9:00AM | Check in opens | PAC Lobby |
| 9:30AM | Mini Programming Competition | Cafeteria |
| 11:00AM | Opening Ceremony | Cafeteria |
| 12:00PM | Hacking Starts | |
| 12:00PM | Team Building Workshop | 152 |
| 1:00PM | Lunch | Cafeteria |
| 2:00PM | MLH Github Copilot Mini-event | 152 |
| 3:00PM | Intro to Python | 153 |
| 4:00PM | CiV CTF Workshop | 152 |
| 4:00PM | Intro to Circuity | 155 |
| 5:30PM | Intro to Web Development | 153 |
| 6:30PM | Dinner | Cafeteria |
| 7:00PM | Photo Booth Opens | Cafeteria |
| 7:00PM | 3D Design and Printing | 152 |
| 8:00PM | Neural Networks with Dr. Bhat | 153 |
| 8:30PM | Intro to Swift | 155 |
| 9:30PM | Intro to Blender | 153 |
| 11:00PM | Intro to Computational Mathemagics ✨ | 155 |
| 11:00PM | Chess Tournament | 153 |
Sunday 11/2
| Time | Event | Location |
| 12:00AM | Midnight Snack | Cafeteria |
| 12:30AM | Cup Stacking Tournament & Karaoke | 153 |
| 1:00AM #2 | Smash/mariokart tourney | 155 |
| 7:30AM | Breakfast | Cafeteria |
| 9:00AM | Submissions Close, Hacking Ends | -- |
| 9:30AM | Engineering Challenge | 152 |
| 9:30AM | Public demos open, judging begins | PAC Lobby |
| 11:30AM | Closing Ceremony | Cafeteria |
Requirements
Get Started
Please make sure you have filled out our Google Form, and reviewed the submission requirements and rules!
What can I build?
HackPHS is a completely open-ended hackathon -- we don't restrict you at all in what you can build :).
That being said, we do provide a theme as a starting point. Projects that connect to the theme especially well, or that do it in a creative way will be given more consideration in judging.
What should I submit?
official submission guidance coming soon -- generally, be prepared to submit your project via an online service like GitHub :).
Prizes
First Place
Each member of the 1st Place Team will receive a Gaming Keyboard (worth $160); the team will receive a large cactus plushie. As well as MLH Winner Pins!
Second Place
Each member of the 2nd Place Team will receive a Raspberry Pi 5 (worth $55).
Third Place
Each member of the 3rd Place Team will receive a Gaming Mouse (worth $35).
Wolfram Award
This prize is awarded to all students who submit projects which use Wolfram Language as a significant part of their project. Winners receive a year of WolframOne (worth $1,660 per year!) and eligibility for a $500 scholarship to a Wolfram summer program.
Mini Programming Tournament First Place
The winning contestant at the Mini Programming Tournament will be awarded a large cactus plushie.
Best Use of DigitalOcean Gradient™ AI
The best use of Gradient™ at hackPHS will receive a Retro Wireless Mouse.
DigitalOcean Gradient™ AI is a unified AI cloud for building, training, and deploying machine learning models and AI agents. Get access to GPU infrastructure like DigitalOcean GPU Droplets and Bare Metal servers, along with serverless inference and 1-Click Models for instant deployment of your favorite LLMs!
Best Use of Gen AI
The best use of Generative AI will receive assorted prizes from MLH.
Generative AI is rapidly changing the landscape of software development. This category challenges you to build novel applications that leverage the power of Generative AI APIs. Think outside the box and integrate cutting-edge AI models to create innovative solutions with real-world impact.
To participate, utilize publicly available Generative AI APIs (like those from OpenAI, Anthropic, Hugging Face, Llama, IBM Watson, or Google Gemini) to develop a unique and functional application.
This is your chance to get hands on with cutting edge tech, put your skills on display, and of course, win some awesome prizes!
Best Use of ElevenLabs
The team with the best use of ElevenLabs will recieve ElevenLabs Airpods. 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 exclusive ElevenLabs branded airpods!
Best Use of Snowflake API
The team with the best use of the Snowflake API will receive an Arduino Tiny ML Kit.
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.
Best .Tech Domain Name
The team with the best .Tech domain name will receive a Blue Snowball Microphone & a free .Tech Domain Name for up to 10 years! Make your Team's Achievements timeless: Win a .Tech Domain Name for up to 10 years to Showcase and Expand Your Project, Plus Blue Snowball Mics for Effortless Collaboration on Zoom, empowering you to build even more cool things together!
Photon Hybrid Intelligence Track -- Winner
The first place team on Photon's Hybrid Intelligence track will receive $150 in cash, $200 in Photon Credits, and a Fast-Track to the final interview round with the Photon Team.
Photon Hybrid Intelligence Track -- Runner-up
The second place team on Photon's Hybrid Intelligence track will receive $50 in cash and $100 in Photon API credits!
Devpost Achievements
Submitting to this hackathon could earn you:
Judges
Jonathan Ji
hackPHS organizer
Om Mehta
hackPHS organizer
Jyoti Shah
Director of Application Development - ADP
Saiprasaad Kalyanaraman
Full-Stack Developer
Judging Criteria
-
Innovativeness
How innovative is this submission? Does the implementation of this idea break convention? -
Functionality
Is the project in a usable state? Is using it intuitive enough for the average user to understand? Does it fulfill the concept? -
Creativity
Did you clearly think outside of the box when making this? Is it just a React To-do app or something more?
Questions? Email the hackathon manager
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