Important Dates

Stay on track and don’t miss a beat — here are the key dates leading up to and during Jewel City Hacks:

Eligibility

Jewel City Hacks 2.0 is open to the public, and encourages all students, early-career professionals, and aspiring technologists who want to invent solutions that can launch real companies in Glendale and beyond.

You are eligible if you are:

• Member of Hacker Fund, FoundersBoost, or the Alliance for SoCal Innovation

• A high school, college, or trade school student

• A resident of Glendale, Los Angeles County, or surrounding areas

• New to hackathons or a seasoned builder — all experience levels welcome

• You must abide by the Hacker Fund Code of Conduct. All hackathon participants entering the contest on Devpost must abide by this Hackathon Contest Agreement.
• You must apply and be accepted to Jewel City Hacks via our calendar page on Luma.

Teams:

• Teams can have 1–4 members

• You may apply as an individual and join a team on-site

• All team members must register on Devpost and meet eligibility requirements

Additional Notes:

• No prior coding experience required — we welcome designers, entrepreneurs, creatives, and builders from all disciplines

• Projects must be built during hackathon submission period to qualify

• Attendees must follow the Code of Conduct and respect the collaborative, inclusive spirit of the hackathon

• All attendees must sign the Hackathon Participation Form in order to participate. This participation form is emailed to you when you are admitted to join the hackathon via the registration page here: www.jewelcityhacks.com. 

Submission Requirements

To qualify for judging and prizes at Jewel City Hacks, each team must submit a complete project package by the submission deadline.

Required Materials:

1. Devpost Project Page

   • Project title and short tagline

   • Description of what your project does and who it serves

   • Tech stack/tools used

   • Link to a live demo (if available)

   • Team member names

2. Demo Video (Max 2 minutes)

   • Clearly show how your prototype works

   • Explain the problem you're solving

   • Can be a simple screen recording or filmed on your phone

3. Pitch Deck or Business Summary (PDF or Google Slides)

   • Problem & solution

   • Target market and users

   • Business model or pathway to sustainability

   • Future development roadmap (optional but encouraged)

4. Code Repository (Optional but Encouraged)

   • GitHub or other code hosting link

   • Include a README with setup instructions

   • Open-source is a plus, but not required

5. Final Presentation Slides (for Demo Day Finalists)

   • Condensed deck (3–5 slides) for live judging

   • Include visuals of your prototype and a clear impact statement

Important Notes:

• All submissions must be created during the hackathon submission period

• Plagiarized projects will be disqualified

• One submission per team

• Submit your project via Devpost by 6:00 PM PST on September 27th, 2025

Need help preparing your submission? Mentors will be available throughout the event to guide you.

Submit here → jewelcityhacks.devpost.com

Prizes

Yes — there will be prizes 👀
And yes — they’re going to be worth building for.

We’re keeping the exact awards under wraps for now, but here’s what you can expect:

• Cash prizes for top projects

• Special awards for creativity, community impact, and innovation

• Swag, tech gear, and local perks for standout teams

• Opportunities to pitch to partners and continue building post-event

Finalists will demo their projects live for judges, and winners will be announced at closing ceremonies.

Judging Criteria & Winner Selection

Projects at Jewel City Hacks will be evaluated by a panel of expert judges drawn from the Hacker Fund professional network, which includes mentors and engineers from over 150+ top tech companies — including Apple, Google, Microsoft, Snap, SpaceX, Tesla, and others.

In addition, City of Glendale officials have been invited to serve as judges to support the city’s Glendale Tech Strategy and champion local innovation.

Each project will be scored across the following categories:

Award Categories

• Best Overall Hack

• Most Innovative Solution

• Best Pitch

• Community Impact Award

• Best Use of VR or Makerspace Tools

Projects that stand out across multiple criteria may be invited to continue development with support from Hacker Fund and community partners.

Build something bold. Solve something real. Pitch it like it’s fundable.