What is KickStart?
KickStart ’25 is a one-week startup sprint where participants validate a real problem, build a scrappy MVP, launch it to actual users, and iterate based on feedback. Unlike a traditional hackathon, KickStart is designed to simulate the real pace and pressure of building a startup: finding users, shipping fast, and proving your idea can make its first dollar.
Event Timeline
- November 19: Kickoff Day
- November 22: Build Day
- November 23: Launch Day & Public Showcase
- November 26: Demo Day
Requirements
Video Submission
On Devpost, you'll submit a 1-2 minute video demoing your project and explaining your progress. Consider this an overview of what you've achieved and what you've built so far.
These videos will be used to determine the Fetch AI & VidIQ stream prizes.
In-Person Judging
In-person judging will happen on demo day, where you'll make a 5 minute pitch and have a 2 min Q&A. The pitch should explain what you've built & how it solves a customer pain point, your progress with getting customers, and your roadmap moving foward.
The participant judging information package can be found here.
Prizes
First Place
$1000, a coffee chat with a16z, and Launch Academy's "Launch your startup" course worth $300.
Second Place
Third Place
vidIQ - Best Startup for Content Creators
$500 in Amazon gift cards and an interview with vidIQ's head of product engineering.
Fetch AI - Best use of Fetch AI
Devpost Achievements
Submitting to this hackathon could earn you:
Judges
Floyd Sijmons
Chang
Shantanu Mehta
Aaron Stuart
Emily Davies
Gabe
Angus Fudge
Mai Trinh
Paula
Rahul Rao
Kevin Dhir
Abhay Ghatpande
Melaniia Volkodav
Tony Hui
Alexander Dungate
Judging Criteria
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Technical Complexity
Questions? Email the hackathon manager
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