VDS Ideathon 2026

Overview

This hackathon challenges you to create a custom AI assistant using UMass's GenAI platform to help students, faculty, or staff at UMass Amherst. Your goal is to address everyday campus issues like academic navigation, research help, or mental health support, making campus life more equitable and human-centered. The best projects will be both technically sound and genuinely meaningful.

Requirements

This hackathon is for college students only, and you must be above the legal age of majority in your country. Teams should have 2 to 3 members, and companies or professional organizations cannot participate. The hackathon is open to participants in the US only. You'll use UMass's GenAI platform, and no coding is required. To submit, you need to provide a Google Doc containing your agent's title and description, the problem it solves, the exact instructions you used, the model and parameters you chose, any files you uploaded, and screenshots or a screen recording showing your assistant in action.

Prizes

There's a total of $183 in cash prizes. The first-place winner will receive $94, the second-place winner gets $50, and the third-place winner will receive $39.