About the Hackathon
Build Things People Need
Theme:Build Things People Need: High‑Value, High‑Impact Solutions to Shape Communities.Dates:4th – 7th March 2026 (Final)Venue:African Leadership University, Kigali, RwandaTime:9:00 AM - 9:00 PMOverviewThe CodeXtreme Ingenious Hackathon is a 4-day intensive venture formation sprint designed to transform high-potential student ideas into structured startup teams.This year, the Hackathon will convene250–350 top student founders and aggressive buildersacross disciplines, selecting10 venturesinto a structured 5 month Buildathon track focused on disciplined execution, team and product development, market traction, and early startup growth.The Hackathon serves as the entry point into the national Ingenious talent and venture pipeline operating across multiple university nodes.ObjectivesActivate early tech talent: provide a platform for students and recent graduates to learn, build, pressure test their skills, flex their builder/innovator capabilities, and share their creative passion for technology. We aim to Discover, Inspire, Activate, Nurture, and Accelerate early tech talent to build the next generation of aggressive builders and innovators of today.Solve real problems: encourage participants to develop scalable solutions that address pressing real-world challenges under the theme “Build Things People Need: High‑Value, High‑Impact Solutions to Shape Communities.”Co-build, nurture and launch top prototypes: select top 10 teams for the CodeXtreme Ingenious 5-month technical buildathon and help them build and deploy fully fledged products the world. From raw ideas to impact.Participants & DiversityTarget audience: 350+ students, self-taught, bootcamps and recent graduates from universities across Rwanda. Early tech talent and founders.Team size: 2 – 4 people.Mentors & judges: We are recruiting mentors and a diverse judging panel representing sponsors, academia, and industry.Event Structure & ScheduleThe hackathon will span four daysDayActivities (high‑level overview)Day 1 – KickoffOpening ceremony, keynote, presentation of sponsor challenges, team formation, ideation, and hacking.Day 2 – Build & Learn[Online] Full day of hacking interspersed with workshops, 1:1 mentorship, and product feedback sessions.Day 3 – Refine & Prepare[Online] Hacking continues interspersed with workshops, and 1:1 mentorship, pitch‑clinic, and product feedback sessions.Day 4 – Demo Day & ExpoSubmissions, demos, and presentations. Science‑fair exhibition, judges panel. Awards and closing ceremony.Post‑Event – Networking CocktailEvening networking cocktail for top 10 teams, mentors, judges; experts, sponsors and guests. Great opportunity to engage and build lasting relationships. Ingenious kicks off in-house.Challenges Pillars & TracksPillar 1 - Productive EconomyAgriTechClimate and SustainabilityPhysical Infrastructure & LogisticsIoTFocus on production, supply chains, and the real economy.Pillar 2 - Human Capital SystemsHealthTechEdTechFocus on human capability and long-term development.Pillar 3 - Financial & Digital InfrastructureFinTech & Economic EmpowermentDigital and Cloud InfrastructureDecentralized Ledger TechnologyFocus on economic rails + digital backbone.Open track – participants solve any meaningful and relatively hardcore problem aligned with the theme. This is for people working on really contrarian ideas or deep/rare tech that does not fit in any of the provided pillars and tracks.Workshops & MentorshipProduct and Design Engineering workshop: Building in the age of AI. An Engineering Manager Perspective.Product and Business workshop: A PMF Journey.1:1 Engagement with Mentors: Office hours, product feedback sessions, and pitch clinic.Judging Criteria & DeliverablesReference ourofficial judging criteria.Prizes & Recognition1st Place: USD 2,500 + exclusive Ingenious Buildathon spot.2nd Place: USD 1,500 + exclusive Ingenious Buildathon spot.3rd Place: USD 1,000 + exclusive Ingenious Buildathon spot.4th to 10th Place: Exclusive access to the CodeXtreme Ingenious Buildathon track, the national talent and venture pipeline operating across multiple university nodes for an incredible 5 months of building.Ingenious Hack Certificateafter the hackathon.Ingenious Build Certificateafter the 5-month buildathon track.Why partner with us?Direct exposure to high-potential student foundersEarly visibility into emerging ventures ready to scale after the BuildathonAlignment with structured venture developmentParticipating in building Rwanda’s new age of startup talent and scalable ventures.Contribution to a national, multi-university innovation pipelineContact InformationEmail:events@codextreme.ioPhone: +250737026499Docs2026 Season | Official ScheduleCodeXtreme-2025-impact-report.pdf