Hello, Robot! 1-Day Hackathon with Viam and SPC
We're excited to host a 1-day hackathon for people who want to build physical AI applications in an accelerated learning experience. We’re looking for curious, ambitious builders in NYC with software experience. Prior robotics experience is not required, just an interest in physical AI.
Each team gets to learn and build with a real robot arm. Your robot will be set up and ready to go when you get there. We'll begin the day with a quickstart tutorial to introduce you to the Viam software platform and the robot you'll be using for the day. Each team will get a dedicated mentor to get you started and provide help as you need it. Please bring your own laptop.
Come join us at South Park Commons NYC to explore what’s possible with physical AI.
Your robot
Each team will have access to:
UFactory xArm or Universal Robotics arm with a two finger gripper attachment
Linux compute machine
RealSense D435 or Orbbec Astra 2 camera (fixed to arm).
Webcams
Other hardware might be available as well. Please inquire within the notes section when you sign up for the event.
What should we build?
Teams are free to choose their own technical approach and come up with their own ideas. There are so many tasks that are easy for humans but challenging for a robot arm. Here are a few ideas:
Approachable: pouring a drink, pick and place, drawing a picture
Intermediate: mixing a cocktail, plugging in a charger, quality inspection
Ambitious: playing chess, receiving an object from a human hand, slicing fruit, folding clothes
What skills do you need to participate?
Prior robotics experience is not required. You should have:
Strong Coding Fundamentals: You can use Python, Go, TypeScript/JavaScript, or C++. Since Viam handles the hardware connection, you just need to be comfortable using your language of choice to write the main logic.
Linux Terminal Basics: You need to know how to SSH into the robot’s computer and run basic commands to get things running.
Reading JSON Configs: Viam uses JSON to map out and connect the cameras and arms, so you need to be comfortable reading and editing these configuration files.
Fast Git Workflows: Because it's a fast-paced one-day event, your team needs to share code seamlessly using basic Git commands so everyone can build at the same time.
Bonus: Using Pre-Made AI/Vision Models: You don't need to train an AI model, but it might be helpful to know how to plug in a pre-trained model (like YOLO) to help the robot "see" and identify objects.
Schedule
9:30am — Check-in, breakfast & team formation
10am — Quickstart tutorial
11am — Hacking begins!
7:30pm — Projects due
8pm — Demos + drinks + prizes
About Viam Robotics
Viam is the software platform for building, deploying, and managing robotics applications. Engineers use Viam to code applications in Python, Go, C++, or TypeScript, control any hardware via a unified API, and manage production fleets with built-in OTA updates and edge AI. Founded by MongoDB co-founder Eliot Horowitz, Viam is based in New York City.
About South Park Commons (SPC)
SPC is a technical community and venture fund dedicated to helping founders, researchers, and technologists figure out what to work on next—what we call the -1 to 0 stage of your career. We believe this is best accomplished in the most talent-dense community possible.
If you are exploring what's next, we encourage you to apply for SPC membership.