nwHacks is the biggest hackathon in Western Canada hosted at the University of British Columbia. This hackathon is dedicated to creating a thriving community of technology lovers in the Pacific Northwest region by bringing together the brightest minds for an epic two day event. Get ready for a weekend of learning and discovery!
See the main site for more information: https://nwhacks.io
Requirements
All projects must be submitted on Devpost by 1:00 PM PST on Sunday, January 27, 2019.
All participants must follow MLH's Code of Conduct.
Prizes
$56,157 in prizes
nwHacks Finalists
(5)
- First place: $1500
- Second place: $1000
- Third place: $500
Popular Vote
The best hack, collectively chosen by participants. The winning team will receive JBL GO 2 Waterproof Bluetooth Wireless Speakers (x4).
Standard Library - "Best / most creative use of Standard Library"
The team with the best and most creative use of the Standard Library platform and APIs will win one Nintendo Switch per team member, up to four (4) total. You can qualify by using APIs that exist on Standard Library, by building your own APIs on Standard Library and shipping them to the Standard Library cloud, or a combination of both.
Microsoft - "Azure Prize Champ"
Prize: Automatic entry in Imagine Cup 2019 Semi-Finals and two chances to become one of the few elite teams at our regional finals, plus Xbox One Xs for each team member! (Up to four)
Any team that chooses to enter will evaluated on the following criteria:
1. Was the project developed using Microsoft Azure? (required for entry)
2. Does the project address a clear need, problem, or opportunity and is the solution clearly explained? (10 points)
3. Does the project include innovations in technical design and/or implementation of services (e.g., Cognitive Services, Bot Services, IoT Hub, Functions) and/or user experience? (20 points)
4. Does the project have a clear target market or audience? (5 points)
5. Is the project’s purpose and basic functionality easily understood? (5 points)
6. Does the project have a professional degree of production in terms of performance, user interface, visuals, and audio? (10 points)
Winner is highest total score out of 50
Tie-break: Does the team have a credible plan for getting their project to market in terms of business model, any required partnerships, or other factors?
Hootsuite - “Hack that Best Champions the Power of Human Connection”
(2)
The hack that will win this category should best help connect people, get people talking to each other, or meet each other. Be creative. Think of the ways people might connect with people in the future! Each member of the winning team will receive an Amazon Echo Dot, and will be a part of a tour of the Vancouver Hootsuite office along with a Q&A with some of our team members and our VP of Software Development.
RBC - "Best hack using voice biometrics and conversational design"
Awarded to the team with the best creative use of voice biometrics or behavioural biometrics which leverage voice technology as part of a system. Your app may make use of any platform, but keep in mind that our mentors are best able to support Google Dialogflow, and the Amazon Alexa Skills Kit. Some focus on identification, authentication, and authorization (your app must keep user data private and secure). Extra points for great UX!
Prize:
- 4x 4-pack multi-colour smart light bulbs
- 4x Samsung SmartThings IOT Hub
- 4x IOT Sensor pack (2x door sensors, 1x motion sensor)
- 4x Google Home Minis
- 4x $250 prepaid Visa gift card
- 4x interviews for a Tech & Ops opportunity at RBC
Telus - "Best use of IoT and or AI to help foster sustainable cities"
(2)
- 1st place will be an $800 pre-paid visa gift card for the team to split and preferential placement in our application process
- 2nd place will be a $200 pre-paid visa gift card for the team to split and preferential placement in our application process. More details will be released on day of event.
Realtor.com - "Best Home Buying Experience"
Build the next generation mobile home buying experience using technologies like Alexa, AR/VR or Machine Learning and you can win up to four Alexa devices and a visit to our office to meet the tech leadership team.
Google - "Most Innovative Project"
Google will be awarding AIY Voice kits to each member of the nwHacks team with the most innovative project. Use the kits to build intelligent systems that speak & understand, and then start tinkering! Take things apart, make things better and see what problems you can solve.
.TECH - "Best hack/website on .TECH domain"
Amazon Gift Vouchers for all team members.
The Wolfram Award
(20)
Every member of the top twenty teams will be awarded a year of Wolfram|One Personal Edition plus a one-year subscription to Wolfram|Alpha Pro.
Best Use of Google Cloud Platform
Use a Google Cloud Platform service (list hosting or machine learning) in your project to win a Google Home Mini for each team member
Best Domain Name from Domain.com
Register the most interesting domain using your FREE Domain.com credit this weekend to win a Raspberry Pi & PiHut Essential Kit for each team member
Best IoT Hack Using a Qualcomm Device
Use a Qualcomm device, like a DragonBoard 410C, in an Internet of Things project this weekend to win a Dragonboard 410c for each team member.
Snap Kit Prize
Use Snap Kit to integrate Snapchat's best features into your hack to win Spectacles by Snapchat for each member of your team.
Devpost Achievements
Submitting to this hackathon could earn you:
Judges

Kiana Mohseni
Senior Director of Software Development @ Hootsuite

Den Delimarsky
Program Manager @ Microsoft

Aashish Jain
Senior Manager (Digital Integration) @ Deloitte

Nitin Gandhi
Manager, Software Engineering @ realtor.com

Cinda Heeren
PhD in Computer Science, Senior Instructor @ UBC
Judging Criteria
-
Technology
How technically impressive was the hack? Was the technical problem the team tackled difficult? Did it use a particularly clever technique or did it use many different components? -
Design
Did the team put thought into the user experience? How well designed is the interface? For a hardware project, it might be more about how good the human-computer interaction is (e.g. is it easy to use or does it use a cool interface?) -
Completion
Does the hack work? Did the team achieve everything they wanted? -
Originality
Is the project unique and creative? When someone sees the project, will they think "WOW, this is cool"?
Questions? Email the hackathon manager
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