>_MADHACK — FinTech AI Hackathon
AI Agents Hackathon — Build, Connect, Orchestrate
Join us on a 8-hour hackathon to Build Your Agentic Financial Solution.
If you are curious about the future of finance and want to explore:
How AI agents can replace traditional financial advisors and robo-advisors?
How trading, saving, and money management logic can be automated with AI?
How financial APIs unlock real market data and execution for your product?
How to go from idea to working FinTech demo in a single evening?
Then this hackathon is for you.
What Will You Build?
Teams get a boilerplate repo, API keys, and 2 SDKs.
Build an AI-powered financial solution using the Alpaca FinTech SDK and Orca agent SDK.
Choose one of the following solution types: trading algorithm or robo-advisor, saving algorithm, money admin tool, or financial advisor agent.
Connect your solution to live market data and execute real financial logic.
Deliver a working demo by the end of the event.
Sponsored by
Orca
We're partnering with Orca — the safe, plug-and-play interface for AI agents that gives you the tools to test, deploy, and present AI agents—without DevOps headaches.
Alpaca
We’re partnering with Alpaca.markets — the developer-first trading platform that lets you build, test, and deploy algorithmic trading strategies with ease without the usual infrastructure complexity.
Who Can Join?
This hackathon is built for 3 core profiles:
Tech Builders — Engineers, AI/LLM devs, backend/infra, CS students → You build the system
Product — PMs, product engineers, UX, product-minded profiles → You define what to build
Operators — Finance, FinTech, sales, GTM, industry profiles → You ensure real-world relevance
What To Bring?
Your laptop
Your preferred dev tools (Cursor, Copilot, etc.)
Boilerplate and API keys are provided. Personal subscriptions are not.
What will be judged?
→ Product: How good is the solution? Does it solve a real problem in a compelling way?
→ GTM: How would you put this into the hands of a customer? Is there a clear go-to-market path?
→ Market: How viable is the solution in the market it targets? Is there a real opportunity?
→ Performance: How financially performative is the solution? Does the logic hold up?
Schedule
13:00–13:30 — Doors, networking
13:30–14:00 — Briefing: challenge reveal, rules, Orca walkthrough, team formation
14:00–19:30 — Build Sprint
19:30–21:00 — Demos (3–5 min per team)
21:00+ — Judging, winners, drinks
Prizes
€200 in gift cards (winning team)
Exposure via partner communities & social media
More coming TBC
Organised by
Pitchless Community – Founders Community in Madrid
Nomu Labs – Product Development Studio in Madrid
Tech Brunch — Tech Community in Madrid
Partners
Frequently Asked Questions
What exactly do we have to build?
Each team will build an AI-powered financial solution using the Alpaca SDK and Orca agent framework. Choose one of the following directions:
A trading algorithm or robo-advisor that makes or suggests investment decisions based on market data.
A saving algorithm that analyses income and spending patterns to optimise savings.
A money admin tool that helps users track, categorise, and manage their finances.
A financial advisor agent that answers financial questions and recommends actions based on user context.
At the final demo, all solutions will be presented live and connected through Orca for orchestration and visibility.
What tech stack can we use?
You must use Python or JavaScript (Node.js), as these are supported by the Orca SDK. You are free to use frameworks such as LangChain, CrewAI, or similar. AI coding assistants like Copilot are encouraged. A boilerplate GitHub repo with Orca and Alpaca integration will be provided so you do not waste time on setup.
Do we need to deploy anything?
No DevOps headaches.
You will develop locally during the sprint, and Orca will handle cloud orchestration and visibility for demos.
Servers used for the hackathon will be deleted afterward unless needed for showcasing.
How are teams structured and assigned challenges?
Expect teams of 3–4 people with mixed profiles: engineers, product, finance, and GTM. Teams will be formed on-site to balance skills across the group. Each team selects their own solution direction from the four categories above.
Do we need prior experience with Orca or Alpaca?
No. A boilerplate starter repo with Orca and Alpaca integration will be provided. You focus on the product logic and solution design, not setup.
Who owns the code and IP?
You do. All code built during the hackathon remains yours. Nothing is retained by the organizers unless you explicitly choose to continue showcasing it.
If you cannot find it
Right next to Matadero 📍 New space at Mad Tech Campus.