Critical Ops: A DC National Security Hackathon

​Building for National Security Starts Here

​Join 100+ engineers, builders, and operators for the DC National Security Hackathon on April 17–19, 2026 in the nations capital.

​Full website: http://dcnatsechackathon.com/

​Goal

​Bring together builders, government stakeholders, and investors to work on real-world national security challenges.

​This is about moving from ideas to prototypes to real deployment pathways.

​What You’ll Do

​Work on problem sets sourced from operators across:

• ​🚁 Autonomy & Counter-UAS

• ​📦 Contested Logistics

• ​🛡 Cybersecurity & Critical Infrastructure

• ​🧬 Biotechnology

• ​🤖 AI Agents

​Build anything from software and AI systems to hardware-enabled solutions.

​What You’ll Get

• ​Access to frontier AI tools & Datasets (OpenAI, Meta, and ElevenLabs)

• ​Direct feedback from operators and domain experts

• ​A high-signal community of builders

• ​Exposure to venture capital and national security leaders

​Demo Day

​Curious what gets built? Join us on Sunday for live demos and judging.

​Agenda

​Friday, April 17, 2026

​Kick-off Day

​15:00 - 16:30 - Post-Conference Reception (Georgetown University)

​17:00 - Doors open, Check-in, Networking (National Innovation Quarter)

​18:00 - Welcome by Organizers, Overview of Hackathon

​18:30 - Presentation of Problem Statements

​19:00 - Meta Workshop Presentation

​19:30 - Fireside Chat - Advice for Presentations

​19:50 - Team Formation, Open Networking, Start of Hacking

​21:00 - Venue closes for the evening

​Saturday, April 18, 2026

​Hacking continues all day

​09:00 - Mentor Office Hours Begin

​(Mentors, operators, and sponsors available throughout the day)

​Sunday, April 19, 2026

​12:00 - End of Hacking

​Demo Day (Open to Registered Visitors)

​12:30 - Project Demonstrations & Judging

​14:00 - Award Ceremony

​14:30 - Closing & Networking

Discord With More Information Coming Soon