About the challenge
DeerHacks V celebrates five years of innovation, creativity, and collaboration! Join us for 36 hours of coding, designing, and problem-solving at UofT Mississauga as we mark half a decade of hacking brilliance happening February 27 - March 1, 2026!
We offer a range of workshops and enjoyable activities, providing the perfect opportunity for you to demonstrate your interests and technical passion. After completing your project, you'll have the chance to present it to a panel of seasoned judges and industry experts, offering valuable exposure for those entering the tech field!
Requirements
What to Build
Software or hardware project from scratch. No coding is allowed before the hackathon's building start time.
What to Submit
Submit to DevPost: Confirm your project submission on DevPost as per the hackathon guidelines, including a GitHub repo link to your hackathon project.
**Devpost submission itself is due Saturday at 10:00 PM, but you may continue coding until Sunday at 8:00 AM
Judging Room/Time Assignments: Check Discord by 9:30 AM for your judging room and time slot on the MN 3rd floor.
Judging Arrival: Be in the waiting room (TBA) 5 minutes before your pitch time. Late arrivals will not be judged.
Prizes
DH 5 Overall 1st Place Winner - Beats Headphones
DH 5 Overall Winners
DH 5 Overall 2nd Place Winner - Instax Digital Camera
DH 5 Overall Winner
DH 5 Overall 3rd Place Winner - JBL Go 4 Speaker
DH 5 Overall Winners
Best Use of Gemini API - Google Swag Kits
It’s time to push the boundaries of what's possible with AI using Google Gemini. Check out the Gemini API to build AI-powered apps that make your friends say WHOA. So, what can Gemini do for your hackathon project?
- Understand language like a human and build a chatbot that gives personalized advice
- Analyze info like a supercomputer and create an app that summarizes complex research papers
- Generate creative content like code, scripts, music, and more
Think of the possibilities… what will you build with the Google Gemini API this weekend?
Best Use of ElevenLabs - Beats Solo Earbuds
Deploy natural, human-sounding audio with ElevenLabs. Create realistic, dynamic, and emotionally expressive voices for any project, from interactive AI companions to narrated stories and voice-enabled apps. ElevenLabs will empower you to build rich, immersive experiences without the need for actors or complex audio production, using simply the power of AI.
Integrate fully autonomous audio experiences into your hack with ElevenLabs and give your project a voice, along with giving your team the chance to win some wireless earbuds!
Best Use of Solana - Ledger Nano S Plus
The world of development is evolving fast and Solana is leading the charge with a network built to handle all of your infrastructure needs. Forget high fees and slow confirmations, it’s time to build applications that are fast, efficient, and scalable.
Harness Solana's core advantages like blazing fast execution and near-zero transaction costs to make your hackathon ideas become real world projects. With Solana, the possibilities are endless.
- Create a game, social app, or consumer product that relies on instant, high-frequency transactions.
- Design a sophisticated trading, lending, or decentralized exchange (DEX).
- Build a prototype for supply chain, identity, or payments that can handle massive, real-world volume.
Show us how you can innovate with Solana for a chance to win some cool prizes for you and each member of your team!
Best Use of Vultr - Portable Monitors
Vultr empowers hackers to bring their high-performance projects to life instantly; providing everything from the speed of one-click deployment and scalable cloud compute, to specialized Vultr Cloud GPUs that can power AI-driven applications. We want you to push the limits of what can be built when infrastructure is no longer the bottleneck!
Sign up for a Vultr account today and claim your free cloud credits! Take your next hack to the cloud with Vultr for a chance to win some awesome portable screens for you and your team!
Best Use of Snowflake API - M5Stack Tab5
Play with industry-leading LLMs on a single account using the Snowflake APIs. Adding AI capabilities into your application can be as simple as a single CURL command to Snowflake’s REST API.
Build customized applications, RAG powered chat bots, or embed AI-powered features into your app in half the time with half the hassle. Get started for free with a special, student 120-day Snowflake trial and check out this repository for an example of the Snowflake REST API in action.
Best Use of Auth0 - Wireless Headphones
Auth0 wants your applications to be secure! Why spend hours building features like social sign-in, Multi-Factor Authentication, and passwordless log-in when you can enable them through Auth0 straight out of the box? You can also secure your AI applications with Auth0 for AI Agents.
Auth0 is free to try, doesn’t require a credit card, and allows for up to 7,000 free active users and unlimited log-ins. Make your new account today and use any of the Auth0 APIs for a chance to win a pair of wireless headphones for you and each member of your team!
Devpost Achievements
Submitting to this hackathon could earn you:
Judges
Nina Ricci Lu
Consultant@KPMG
Nandini Shah
Data@Scotiabank
Jeremy Goldman
Entrepeneur/Founder
Vallens Kho
SWE@BAYER
Hassaan Mustafa
Senior SWE @ AMD
Ekene Akuneme
SWE@Amazon
Richard Liu
SWE@Meta
Akira Takaki
SWE@Robinhood
Randy Hickey
Professor @ UofT
Andrew Peterson
Professor @ UofT
Judging Criteria
-
Theme Connection
Does the project connect to Innovation as a concept? This is about whether the hack actually fits the theme. Does it push something forward? Does it challenge the status quo in some domain? -
Originality
Is this idea something we haven't seen before? -
Technical Complexity
The project's technical skill and depth -
Design & UI/UX
The visual appeal and ease of use -
Impact
The ability to solve a real problem effectively -
Presentation
The effectiveness of the pitch, including how clearly and convincingly the team communicates
Questions? Email the hackathon manager
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