Xero APP & Agent Hackathon
Build AI-Powered Apps & Agents powered by Xero
The Rise of the Builder era is here. Two days. $9,000 in prizes. One mission: build AI-powered apps and agents that don’t just look good in a demo, but actually work in the real world. This July, Encode Hub and Xero are bringing together London’s builders, tinkerers, and vibe-coders for a high-energy weekend of hacking.
Xero is a cloud-based accounting platform used by 4.4 million small businesses worldwide. It handles everything from invoicing and payroll to cash flow and tax - and with a powerful API ecosystem, it's built to be extended. This hackathon is your chance to build on top of it.
You’ll use Xero’s APIs, MCP Server, CLI, and AI toolkit to create production-grade tools for the 4.4 million small businesses that need better automation.
What will you build?
There are $9,000 in prizes across 3 tracks
You’ll have access to:
Xero’s MCP Server
Xero CLI
Agentic SDK
vibe coding platforms
a prompt library
direct support from Xero’s API, Product, and Engineering teams all weekend
Learn & Build
The Xero team will show you everything you need to know to get started in a series of workshops on Saturday
Who should join?
No accounting background needed. If you’re comfortable with APIs and already experimenting with AI-native tools like Cursor or LLM orchestration, you’ll fit right in.
With the toolkit and prompt library, you could have your first agent talking to Xero before your coffee goes cold.
Sponsor
Encode Club
A global developer community empowering builders through hackathons, accelerators, and educational programmes. They also offer a vibrant coworking space in the heart of Shoreditch - perfect if you're looking for a place to work and connect!
🚀 Want to join the hackathon? Sign up here: https://www.encodeclub.com/programmes/xero-hackathon
Schedule
All times BST. Workshop leads linked below.
Saturday 4 July
10:00 — Doors open: registration, swag & mingling
10:00 — Breakfast & snacks
11:00 — Intros by Encode: logistics, platform overview & agenda
11:15 — Welcome from Xero: workshop schedule & prizes — Corey Leung & Madhu Gupta
11:15 — Brain break 1: Heads or Tails game
11:25 — Intro: Head of Platform Marketing
11:30 — Overview of the Xero API — Sharon Ball
11:45 — Overview of Make — Sonia Calvo
12:00 — Overview of Lovable
12:15 — Hackathon starts
12:30 — Lunch
13:00 — Team formation
13:30 — Mastering the Xero AI Toolkit / Vibecoding 101 — Regan Ashworth
13:45 — Make deep dive workshop — Sonia Calvo
14:15 — Lovable deep dive workshop
14:45 — Scaffolding for Small Business — Annie Terry
16:00 — Check-in 1: all hackers should be in a team
16:30 — Brain break: LEGO builder challenge
19:00 — Dinner
20:00 — Music on the roof & pop-ups
21:00 — Brain break 2: RC drift car racing
22:00 — Checkpoint 2: mid-hack submission
22:00 — Night munchies
23:00 — Venue closes for the night
Sunday 5 July
08:00 — Breakfast
11:00 — Build complete — submissions announced (Check-in 3)
12:00 — Lunch
13:00 — Pitch training (TBD)
14:30 — Pitch order announced — finalists get ready
14:45 — Pitches: 3-minute demos + questions
15:30 — Judge deliberation
15:45 — Honourable mention prizes
15:50 — Partner prizes: Make & Lovable
16:00 — Awards & winners announced
16:00 — Happy hour
17:00 — Hack ends — hackers depart