AIxBio Hackathon 2026 - San Francisco - Apart Research

​AIxBio Hackathon 2026 - San Francisco

​Build tools for biosecurity before biology outpaces safety. Join 500+ participants globally for a weekend tackling DNA synthesis screening, pandemic early warning, and AI biosecurity tools.

​The Event

​AI is transforming biology faster than biosecurity can keep up. Open-weight biological foundation models and benchtop DNA synthesizers are making it possible to design novel biological sequences with less expertise than ever. Current screening infrastructure covers only a fraction of global synthesis capacity, and most defensive tools are siloed, under-resourced, or still in the research phase.

​Join us at The Fold in San Francisco for a weekend hackathon building practical solutions across four tracks: DNA Synthesis Screening, Pandemic Early Warning, AI Biosecurity Tools, and Benchtop Synthesizer Security.

​Schedule

​Saturday, April 25: 10:00am - 8:00pm Pacific Time
Sunday, April 26: 10:00am - 8:00pm Pacific Time

​Meals provided: Saturday lunch, Sunday lunch.

​Prizes & Opportunities

​Prizes ($4,000+):
1. $2,000 across the top 5 projects overall.
2. $1,000 for the DNA Synthesis Screening track: $500 each for the top 2 projects (sponsored by CBAI).
3. $1,000 for the Benchtop Synthesizer Security track: $500 each for the top 2 projects (sponsored by Sentinel Bio).
4. Top teams: invitation to the Apart Fellowship.
5. Track winners: fast-track to the CBAI Fellowship.

​Organized by

​Apart Research | BlueDot Impact | Cambridge Biosecurity Hub

​Track sponsors

​CBAI (DNA Synthesis Screening) | Sentinel Bio (Benchtop Synthesizer Security)

​Hosted at The Fold, a community space in San Francisco's Mission District.

​This event is for in-person attendees only. If you cannot make it to the venue, you can still participate remotely. Sign up on the hackathon website.