HackTM 2020: Back to the Hack
New decade, same hack. Yes, we’re back! And our 2020 resolution is to give Timisoara the best HackTM edition to date and have a hella good time while doing so.
We hope you had the chance to scoop around the other tech happenings in town and that you’re now prepared to get back to the hack at HackTM in Timisoara. We’re definitely ready and, after the HackTM editions in Sibiu and Oradea, we’re fully-charged with fresh ideas.
Hold on just a second though. We’ve been apart for quite a while. Some catching-up is in order. So here’s what we were up to while we were away.
The Out-Of-Timisoara Hacks
Truth is, organizing a couple of hackathons out of Timisoara helped us gain perspective. It helped us better understand what different types of hackers are looking for, what makes them tick and what’s the best way to scratch their digital “itches”. And, since we want to continue growing HackTM as the largest hackathon in South-Eastern Europe, looking farther than “our own backyard” is a must.
HackTM Sibiu
In Sibiu, we were ah-mazed by the enthusiasm with which HackTM was greeted. We had 60 excited hackers out of which 15 people from Timisoara. Yeap, you can take HackTM out of Timisoara, but you can’t take Timisoara out of the hack. In short, HackTM Sibiu was characterised by the positive mindset of all participating teams and a fun atmosphere that had everyone hacking around the clock.
In addition to being fun, the edition was also very productive. The hacked products were useful and ingenious: from an AI device meant to precisely indicate the intubation position to a drone that patrols the city and alerts the police when it spots violent altercations, Sibiu stepped up the game.
HackTM Oradea
The Oradea hackathon was a great example of how collaborations between public institutions and tech communities can be seamlessly conducted to the benefit of everyone. We want to give a big shout out to the Oradea City Hall and The University of Oradea for all their support. They played a massive part in helping us enroll 100 hackers. The biggest (and most pleasant) surprise, however, was that 110 people showed up at the event.
HackTM 2020: Bigger, Better, More Hackier
We want to take the good vibes from Sibiu and the great collaboration models from Oradea to infuse HackTM 2020 with a fresh feel, more on-site happenings and a more diverse audience.
As always, HackTM will be about the experience. So, while you’ll challenge your coding abilities, you’ll also connect with participants from all over the country (and even outside RO, wink, wink), enjoy more activities and, you’ve guessed it, more goodies.
What’s NEW?
- In 2018, we combined the technical talks and workshops from HackTalks with HackTM. This year, we’ll give each their own well-deserved space and we’ll give you more time to enjoy each. HackTalks will take place at Iulius Congress Hall, on the 22nd of May, and HackTM will be kicked into production between May 22–24 at Sala Polivalenta Dumbravita. This way, you’ll be ready to take all the inspiration from HackTalks and spring it into action at HackTM.
- For those biting on a bigger tech challenge that they’ll be able to chew on during a weekend, we have a way out, without actually having to leave the hackathon. We’re talking about Not Another Hackathon (NAH), which will act as a parallel hacking challenge and plan B. How? All hackers who quit their initial projects can join NAH and work on developing a useless but mighty fun and (logically) challenging idea. For example, past teams worked on a website that told users whether or not they had an active internet connection? Yeah…but LOL, right?!
- The finalists from the first online HackTM Capture the Flag competition will come to HackTM for their decisive showdown. You’ll have the chance to hack right next to them and even ask them tech-existential questions over coffee or pizza or smoothies or burgers or…yes, we’ll diversify our goodies so make sure to spend your COCOs wisely.
We’re also planning quite a few improvements regarding the activities on-site. It’s said that active breaks do wonders for creativity, so we’ll be ready to inspire you with a diversity of challenges and games devised by our sponsors.
We won’t give it all away just yet. Otherwise, there won’t be anything left for you to hack. But do keep an eye on us to be among the first ones to catch the scoop on HackTM 2020 (website updates coming soon). Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and right here, on Medium, is where you’ll find us.
With excitement and hyper-activeness, let’s all get back to the hack!
