​Location: Invest Ottawa - 7 Bayview Station Rd, Ottawa, ON K1Y 2C5

​Agenda

​Subject to change depending on the events of the day.

​Day 1 - Sept 6 (Saturday)

• ​09:30 AM - Doors Open & Check-in

• ​10:00 AM - Opening Talks

• ​10:20 AM - Lightning Talks & Team Formation

• ​10:30 AM - Building Begins

• ​12:00 PM - Lunch

• ​06:00 PM - Dinner

• ​09:45 PM - End of Day 1 (teams can continue building elsewhere. Everyone just need to be out of the building by 10:00 PM)

​Day 2 - Sept 7 (Sunday)

​‼️ Teams must be present to win ‼️

• ​09:00 AM - Submissions Due; Finalist Judging Begins

• ​09:30 AM - Doors Open & Check-in; Audience Voting Begins

• ​10:00 AM - Finalists Announced

• ​10:15 AM - Finalist Pitches

• ​11:45 AM - Winners Announced

• ​12:00 PM - Wrap Up

​Click here to watch this highlight video from the last hackathon.

​🚀 Ship something cool in a weekend (with the help of AI), and win!

​📍 Remember: your project should be a product or tool you build, not a service you offer. This is about building something real that people can use, love, and even pay for.

​🍝 Food will be provided.

​2 Tracks:

1. ​Technical: for experienced coders

2. ​General: for non-technical vibe coders

​Awards & Prizes

​Technical Track

​Coding experience required.

• ​Best Use of Solace Agent Mesh: For the most creative or effective use of Solace's Agent Mesh in your product.
  1st place: $2000
  2nd place: $1000
  3rd place: $500

​General Track

​Vibe coding strongly encouraged. Coding skills can be an advantage.

• ​Most Revenue: Team that generates the most revenue between start and deadline (Sept 12th).
  Prize: $1500

• ​Best Launch Video: Most compelling video that promotes or explains your project.
  Prize: $400

• ​Best UI: Cleanest, most delightful user interface.
  Prize: Vercel Credits

• ​Fastest to First Sales: First team to get real paying customers (B2C: first 5 sales, B2B: first sale).
  Prize: $500

• ​Most People on the Waitlist: Team that drives the highest number of signups.
  Prize: $500

• ​Most Unique GTM (Go-To-Market): Most unconventional or creative way of launching your project.
  Prize: $500

• ​Best Outbound Automation: Smartest use of automation for outbound ops.
  Prize: $500

• ​Best AI for Environmental Impact: Best AI product that creates a positive environmental benefit.
  Prize: $500

• ​Most $$$ Lost (Biggest Burner): For the most hilariously catastrophic financial experiment.
  Prize: $300

• ​Hype Machine (LinkedIn & Twitter/X): Most buzz generated on social media. Must tag AGI Ventures Canada on LinkedIn and/or X (@AgiVentures) & use the hashtags #AGIV #AGIVenturesCanada #BuildToConvert
  Prize: $250 for X/Twitter, $250 for LinkedIn

• ​Best Elevator Pitch AI Reviewer: An AI solution that gives founders instant feedback on their elevator pitch.
  Prize: $500

• ​Most Useful App built with Mocha: go to getmocha.com to start building your through bronze tier
  Prize: $750

• ​Audience Favourite: Fan favourite chosen by the community.
  Prize: Swag

• ​Funniest Hack: Most absurd, hilarious, or chaotic creation (that still kinda works).
  Prize: Swag

• ​Hackathon Spirit: Most collaborative, helpful, or inspiring teammate/team.
  Prize: Swag

• ​Best Costume: Funniest or cleverest outfit that fits the hackathon spirit.
  Prize: Swag

​Project Idea Bank

​💡 To help with some inspiration

​https://docs.google.com/document/d/17BBNgWsUUUf_wCdFldGk9xFda7rkCuUq_RPqWtYg5Z0/edit?usp=sharing

​Optional Workshops (Recorded)

​Get prepped with workshops hosted by past winners and experts in AI BEFORE the hackathon starts.

• ​Day 1 (Sept 4th, Thursday): https://lu.ma/irbxxtd6

  • ​​How to build an AI agent that talks to other tools quickly with Solace Agent Mesh /w Cyrus & Greg

  • ​​Intro to using Lovable /w Kazi Hossain (CEO of thred.ai)

  • ​​How to get your first paying customers during the hackathon /w Ryan & Anton (Clover Labs)

  • ​​Connect your AI agent to real-time data with The Web MCP by Bright Data /w Rafael Levi

• ​Day 2 (Sept 5th, Friday): https://luma.com/coiirxo6

  • ​4:00PM: How we won the last hackathon as a technical team /w Nolan & Derek

  • ​4:30PM: How we won the last hackathon as a non-technical person /w Arezo

  • ​5:00PM: My formula for delivering a great product pitch /w Kaan (AI Tinkerers Ottawa Organizer)

  • ​5:30PM: How build a zero-setup full stack app (Mocha Workshop) /w Kazi (CEO of thred.ai)

​Sponsors

​🙏 Big thanks to our sponsors for making Hackathon 3.0 possible:

​Judges

​Rey Riel, Jamieson Walker, Cyrus Mobini, Elham Soleimani Samarin, Karl Clement, Andrea Holland, Rami Alhamad, and Rade Kovacevic

​Mentors

​​Rafael Levi, Emilien Breton, Bobby Chawla, Stephen Rioux, Cyrus Mobini, Greg Meldrum, Rami Alhamad, and Eduardo Bailetti

​FAQ

​Is the hackathon in person?

​Yes! This is an in-person event. Being in the same space with curious, driven builders adds a whole new layer of energy. Surrounded by brilliant minds, tight timelines, and shared ambition—this is where the magic happens.

​What should I bring?

• ​Your laptop

• ​Your energy and curiosity

• ​A charger or two (maybe a power surge?)

• ​And your tinkering spirit

​Will food and drinks be provided?

​Yes! We’ve got snacks, meals, and caffeine to keep you going.

​What if I don't have an idea?

​No problem at all:

• ​Join a team working on something exciting

• ​Or pick from a list of idea prompts we’ll have ready

​What if I don't have a team?

​Also totally fine:

• ​You can hack solo

• ​Or meet potential teammates at the event—we’ll help make intros

​I don't know how to code, should I still join?

​Definitely!

• ​With vibe coding, you can build apps using natural language instead of traditional code

• ​Team up with coders and contribute your product instincts, domain expertise, or wild creativity

• ​This is a space for makers, designers, tinkerers, and storytellers—not just coders

​Who are AI Tinkerers?

​Watch 2024 recap

​​Our group welcomes developers of all backgrounds. If you’re passionate about the technicalities behind developing AI systems, this is a home for you. Our promise is to provide a stage for open-source AI developers to share code and the lessons they’ve learned from experimentation.

​Join our Discord to get started (click here)

​​Organizers

• ​​Neilda Gagné

• ​Hai Nghiem

• ​​Marc-Antoine Ruel

• ​Thoufeek Baber

• ​Sukhpal Saini

• ​Susan Habib

• ​Kaan UN

• ​Nolan Druid

• ​Mariia Yermolenko

• ​Zara Safsovski

​​Previous hackathon photos

​Our catering partner: Chef Ric's

​Chef Ric’s catering originated from and remains indelibly linked to The Ottawa Mission’s renowned Food Services Training Program (FSTP). Since 2006, Chef Ric’s catering has raised funds for the FSTP, a no-cost job training program that provides culinary training and employment opportunities to those who are experiencing or who are at-risk-of homelessness, along with other Mission programs. FSTP students also gain valuable hands-on catering experience in working directly with Chef Ric’s. Approximately 90% of FSTP graduates find employment in the food services industry.

​Catering Menu

​

​Community Support

​​Did something happen and you need to talk about it anonymously? Fill out this anonymous form.

-----
👉 By registering for this event, you agree to release AGI Ventures Canada Inc. and Invest Ottawa from all liability related to the event. You also consent to be subscribed to the AGI Ventures Canada newsletter for updates on future workshops, events, and resources. You may unsubscribe at any time.