Dates

Submissions open October 18, 2026 at 10:00 and close October 18, 2026 at 16:00. Submissions close sharply at 16:00, when judging begins. Judging runs 16:00 to 17:00 on the same day. Late submissions are accepted and will be reviewed after the hackathon ends, while participants are presenting.

Eligibility

Open to students (all student types) aged 16 or older.
Open to participants in Bangladesh only.
Only solo participants are allowed; teams are not permitted.

Project and Submission Requirements

Projects must be original work created during the event. Pre-existing open-source libraries, frameworks, models and APIs may be used, but must be credited.
Releasing your project under an open-source license is strongly encouraged (see choosealicense.com).
Submissions must meet the Submission Requirements and be submitted on Devpost before the deadline.

Code of Conduct

All participants must follow the MLH Code of Conduct. Violations may result in disqualification and removal from the event.

Prizes

[TBD: prizes]

Judging Criteria and Winner Selection

Projects will be evaluated by the judging panel. Judging criteria (100 points total, solo projects):

Open Source & Model Use (30%): Does the project make meaningful use of open-source code or AI models, and is the work shared openly in the spirit of Hacktoberfest?
Innovation (20%): Is the idea new, or does it take a fresh angle on a known problem?
Social Impact (20%): Does it address a real need for people in Bangladesh or beyond?
Creativity (15%): Is the approach clever, original, and well thought out?
Design & Usability (15%): Is it clean, simple, and easy for a new user to try?

The judges' decisions are final.