HackTheMidlands 5.0 are inspiring creativity and innovation and empowering the technologists of the future, even in the pandemic.
From 22nd to 25th October, over 700 participants from across the globe came together for a 75-hour ‘creative marathon’ - with a range of incredible sponsors including Majestic, Capgemini, BT, Northrop Grumman and Capital One. Despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, participants of all ages and skill levels came together online using Discord, to build incredible projects, learn new skills, and present and share their creations. As always, this was driven by our desire to provide a truly unique environment for attendees to experience, leaving them with a real sense of delight and achievement, as well as a space to learn, build, and share their ideas.
Founded in early 2016, HackTheMidlands has grown considerably over the past five years, from around 180 to around 300 attendees in 2019, and an estimated 748 participants this year. It gives these participants unparallelled networking opportunities, both with each other, and withour multitude of sponsors - providing them with an invaluable springboard into a career in STEM. Though organisation in lockdown has been a wild ride, we’ve managed to pull off our most diverse year so far - with participants taking part from all corners of the globe, including the UK, India, and the USA. Not only that, but we engaged an estimated 40% non-male, and 50% non-white participants - well beyond the average in computer science; a diversity to which we attribute the astounding diversity of projects created this year.
An exceptional number of projects (over 50) with tangible outputs in real-world, contexts were submitted this year. These included:
- “Fakebook” - a web-based tool, disguised as Facebook, designed to educate children and adults alike about cybersecurity.
- “Kajiotchi” - an interactive tamagotchi style pet that you can look after by completing your chores or todos.
- “Spot” - a one-tap payment system allowing businesses to take card payments with just a link.
- “Corona Decoder” - an online chatbot to help the general public understand the current COVID-19 restrictions in their area.
- “HelpTheMidlands” - a web application designed to empower individuals to volunteer time in their local communities during the pandemic.
For a full gallery of projects please see the link below: