Highlights from the GeoHackathon 2014
How 26 teams spent a whole weekend experimenting with geospatial technology
UP Singapore, in partnership with SLA, successfully implemented the GeoHackathon last weekend and we are proud to say that it was a success. We thank all those who came down to participate and/or watch the presentations over the weekend. We hope you enjoyed it as much as we did. For those of you who couldn’t make it, here is a brief rundown of the GeoHackathon experience. Also, remember to keep a lookout at our Facebook page for details about upcoming hackathons!
Friday, June 6th: The Kickoff
Friday was one of those days: dark and rainy. Despite the bad weather, almost 140 people came down to 237 South Bridge Road to attend the GeoHackathon opening. The evening started with a few talks by interesting people in the geospatial space including Andres Sevstuk from SUTD, Shobhit Shukla from AdNear and Natalie Ip from dilivr.it. The talks ended with short pitches from our partner VWOs (NVPC, SG Enable, Food From the Heart and Singapore Red Cross), who had challenges of their own for the hackathon participants.
Then, the really fun part started. It was time for the hackathon participants to pitch their own ideas. So, the braver participants took the stage and told us what they want to do with geospatial technology as well as the skillset they need to implement the project.
26 pitches later, we dove right into team formation. There were more participants than we had anticipated, so initially it was a bit of a struggle for participants to find their perfect teammates in the crowd. Eventually things sped as members from the UP Singapore teams helped with the team matchmaking. By the end of the night, we had 26 teams. Hardly able to contain their enthusiasm, some of the teams went to work right away, using the different co-working spaces around 237. It was after 11pm when the last team had left and the UP Singapore team closed 237 South Bridge Road for the night.
Saturday, June 7th: Work, Work, Work
Saturday was all about working. Teams that had formed the night before came in bright and early. With a healthy breakfast catered by Chef Clement from Simply Eden, they were fired up and ready to go.
Teams also had the chance to consult with our mentors, who generously volunteered their Saturday to give teams some helpful tips for their projects.
Responding to survey results from our previous hackathons, UP Singapore tried something new this time and kept the venue open overnight so participants had some extra hours to work on their ideas. I was told that sheer motivation (as well as some coffee and Red Bull) kept the teams working throughout the night.
Sunday, June 8th: Showtime
There was no time to sleep off the all-nighter. With 26 teams, the practice pitch clinic had to start at 8.30am on Sunday. Representatives from UP Singapore and SLA listened watched each team rehearse their pitches, all the while judging the merit of their prototypes as well as their presentation skills. Thus, teams received another round of feedback. By the end of the practice pitch clinic, 22 teams out of the 26 were selected for the finals that would take place in the afternoon.
237 South Bridge Road, which had served as co-working space over the weekend, was quickly rearranged to accommodate an audience of almost 200 that would be watching the finals.
With the judging panel comfortably seated on the front row, the GeoHackathon finals was ready to start. This is the best part of any hackathon: a chance to be amazed by what the participants manage to come up with under 48 hours. The variety of ideas as well as the innovative use of geospatial technology kept us wowed through all the presentations. It was hard to decide which one was the best so I cannot imagine what the judges had to go through to pick the winners.
While the judges moved upstairs for the deliberations, the audience was buzzing with excitement. People talked, networked and even made new friends. The camaraderie between different teams was amazing, with each congratulating the other on their hard work.
When the judges came down, the air was thick with anticipation. Here are the teams who received prizes, which included a grant from SLA and a trophy printed on our very own 3D printed. Click here to view the presentations of the winning teams!
Even though we award prizes, we have a saying here in UP Singapore which says that everyone who participates in our hackathons are winners. And we really do mean it. We have deep appreciation and respect for everyone who participates over the weekend to make our hackathons possible. We hope you had a good time hacking and meeting new people. Here’s to more UP Singapore hackathons!
