Catalyst — QMUL AI Hackathon

Event Details

Date: Mar 20–22, 2026
Location: TBC
Prizes: £7,000+
Registration: Opening soon

Tracks

01. Agents & Automation
02. Creative AI & Wild Apps
03. AI Safety & Alignment

Become a Sponsor

Prizes

1ST PLACE
£3,000
+ Mentorship Package
2ND PLACE
£2,000
+ Cloud Credits
3RD PLACE
£1,000
+ Swag Bundle
TRACK WINNERS
£500
Each + Special Recognition

Tracks

Track 1: Agents & Automation

Build systems that reason, plan, use tools, and act autonomously. Focus on multi-agent systems and 'Agentic' workflows.

#AutoGPT #LangChain #Planning #MultiAgent

Track 2: Creative AI & Wild Apps

Push boundaries with unconventional AI applications. Hardware integrations, biotech, generative art, robotics, or something nobody's thought of yet.

#Hardware #Biotech #GenArt #Robotics

Track 3: AI Safety & Alignment

Pioneer verifiable safety tools, interpretability dashboards, and bias detection systems.

#Safety #Interpretability #Ethics #Alignment

Schedule

Friday — Kickoff (20 Mar)

18:00 Doors Open & Check-in
19:00 Opening Ceremony & Keynotes
20:00 Team Formation & Networking
21:00 Hacking begins

Saturday — Build Day (21 Mar)

09:00 Breakfast Served
All day Building & mentor sessions
12:00 Workshop: Prompt Engineering
14:00 Workshop: Model Fine-tuning
20:00 Pizza Night (100+ Pizzas)
00:00 Midnight Snacks & Energy Drinks

Sunday — Demos & Judging (22 Mar)

08:00 Breakfast & Final Push
12:00 Submissions Close
13:00 Lunch Break
14:30 Finalist Demos & Presentations
16:00 Awards Ceremony
17:00 Networking & Shutdown

Sponsors & Partners

FAQ

Who can participate?

Open to all university students. Teams of 2-5 members. Solo participants will be matched during team formation.

What should I bring?

Laptop, charger, student ID, and sleeping bag if you plan to stay overnight. We provide food, drinks, and WiFi.

Do I need AI experience?

No! We welcome all skill levels. Workshops and mentors will help you get started.

Is it free?

Yes! The event is completely free including meals, snacks, and swag.