The 2020 Hackaday Prize FAQ

How do I enter?

There is a drop down menu below your project image. Simply start a project and click the dropdown, from there you will see 2020 Hackaday Prize. Be sure to tag the challenge you will be addressing (CalEarth, Field Ready, UCPLA, Conservation X Labs, or Wildcard)

What is considered an entry?

Put simply, you need an idea, an image, and documentation. To start, choose a participating nonprofit’s open challenge to address, or talk about a technology problem facing people today and your idea of what a solution might be and enter it to the Wildcard Challenge. You have plenty of time to develop your idea before judging in October.

From your documentation, others should be able to build what you're working on, and incorporate the best ideas into their own projects. To be eligible for judging you must have project logs or instructions by August 31st.

Those who prefer more constraints will excel in any Nonprofit Open Call Challenges. But everyone should enter the Wildcard Challenge too as it encourages you to plan well, working though problems before they become huge prototyping issues.

What are the 2020 Hackaday Prize Challenges? When do they start/end?

Choose to enter any of these five challenges. The entry period for all challenges starts May 19th and ends August 31st.

Can I enter the Hackaday Prize with a project that does not address any of the Nonprofit Open Call Challenges?

Yes you can, through the Wildcard Challenge. If you have not tagged any of the Nonprofit Open Call Challenges your project will automatically be considered a Wildcard Challenge entry.

What is the difference between the Open Call Challenges and the Dream Team Challenges?

Nonprofit Open Call Challenges

In collaboration with each nonprofit partner we have developed Open Call challenges that range in complexity, theme, and difficulty. Submissions for these challenges will be accepted for the entirety of the campaign: from May 19th until August 31st, 2020. The top 100 finalists will be announced in September, and final judging will take place in October. These are the entries that will be eligible for the prizes in November.

Dream Team Challenges

Dream Team challenges have been designed with a dedicated three person task force in mind. We invite engineers, designers, and hackers to apply to join one of these dream teams and put their skills to the test. Dream Team members will be awarded two $3,000 microgrants for the months of June and July for their work on one nonprofit’s challenge. Dream Teams must deliver a high fidelity working prototype, and DFM package by August 1st. If you are accepted as a Dream Team grantee, you will not be eligible to be a finalist in the 2020 Hackaday Prize.

If I am accepted as a Dream Team grant recipient, can I still win one of the prizes?

No, if you are accepted as a Dream Team participant, you are no longer eligible to be a finalist in the 2020 Hackaday Prize.

How do I see which projects have already been entered?

Check out this full list of official entries.

How much of my Project Profile will I be judged upon?

All parts of your project will be judged. We recommend you start with a brief summary to provide an overall understanding of your project. From there, explain each part in detail, adding images and diagrams as needed. A video is only required for the final round, but if you want to make one to help walk through your project that is a great idea.

Where do I submit my prize project entry video?

On the Edit Project page add the link to your entry video in the Contest Entry Videos field and click save.

What does "open" actually mean?

Open refers to how much you have documented about your project and how much you will make available to the public when you push your project out into the world. Optimally, we would like to see open source drivers, hardware, and development tools; the final project would also be licensed as open source (using the wide range of licenses that are possible). This is a judging preference, so providing design files in a format that uses open source tools (and therefore allows others to easily use or modify them), will help you with the best chance of edging out your competition.

What are the judges using as criteria for who moves on to the final round?

You must complete the minimum entry requirements for the Challenge. Challenge entries will be judged on the following criteria:

How effective of a solution is the entry to the challenge it is responding to?
How thoroughly documented were the design process & design decisions?
How ready is this design to be manufactured?
How complete is the project?

What are the judges using as criteria to select the top ten winners?

Finalist entries will be judged on the following criteria:

Concept- Is the project creative, original, functional, and pushing boundaries? Does the project effectively address the selected challenge?
Design- Is there a depth of design detail available (like a system design, CAD models, project test methods, etc.)? Is there base-level planning for the functionality (e.g., functional block diagram, list of specifications and descriptions of how they will be met, etc.)? How user-friendly is the design?
Production- Is the project realistically reproducible (taking into consideration necessary materials, skills, and production processes)? Are the manufacturing processes detailed? Are those processes realistic for scalability?
Benchmark- How well is the project impact and viability demonstrated? Are estimated costs realistic? How well does the project improve upon other designs?
Communication- How thoroughly have the Final Round requirements been completed? How well documented is the project? How “open” is the design? Is the project reproducible (consider materials, skills, and processes) and could the work be extended for other uses?

I was a finalist in 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, or 2019 can I enter the same project again?

If you won anything in a previous presentation of The Hackaday Prize that project is not eligible for entry in this Contest. You may enter with a substantially different project.

Can I re-enter my project from 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, or 2019?

You can enter a previous Prize entry, but you must create a new project page and the project must be significantly different from when previously entered and show meaningful development during the course of the Contest.

I'm under 18, are there special rules around entering?

Yes, you must fill out a consent form and have a parent or guardian sign it. When you click on the dropdown under your project profile to enter the Prize, you'll get a screen with a link to download the consent form. Here is a link to the consent form.

Where can I see the Hackaday Prize 2020 entries?

Hackaday.io lists all of the Hackaday Prize 2020 projects entered.

FAQ