First Commit is a hackathon designed for developers at any stage of their journey, emphasizing that learning and building are more important than perfection. Whether this is your first project or your first hackathon, the event welcomes participants who are willing to learn, build, and share their journey.
What You Can Build There is no required theme; participants are free to build web applications, mobile apps, desktop applications, games, hardware projects, AI-powered tools, or any other software-related project. The goal is to build something you are passionate about. AI tools are allowed and encouraged as learning aids to help with brainstorming, debugging, or improvement, but they should support your work rather than replace it. Judges value understanding, creativity, and problem-solving over AI-generated code.
Submission Requirements To be eligible for judging, teams or individuals must submit a working project created during the hackathon on Devpost before the deadline. Submissions must include: * A public GitHub repository containing source code. * A clear project description explaining what was built, the problem it solves, and who it is for. * A demo presentation (recommended 3–5 minutes) showcasing the project, how it works, technologies used, challenges overcome, and lessons learned. * A README with setup instructions so judges can run the project. * A live deployment or hosted version of the project. * Screenshots or images of the project. * A list of technologies, frameworks, APIs, or libraries used. * Any presentation slides or additional documentation.
Projects may be built individually or in teams. While existing libraries, templates, and frameworks are allowed, the core work must be completed during the event. Participants must own or have permission to use all assets included in their submission. Incomplete, non-functional, or plagiarized submissions may be disqualified.
Judging Criteria Projects are primarily judged on five key areas: * Learning & Growth (30%): Progress throughout the event, challenges overcome, new skills developed, and understanding of the project. * Creativity & Impact (25%): Originality, innovation, usefulness to users, and the problem being solved. * Technical Execution (25%): Functionality, code quality, technical decisions, and effective use of tools. * Presentation & Communication (20%): Demo quality, clarity of explanation, showing what was learned, and clear documentation.
Prizes First Commit offers various awards including Champion, Most Ambitious Project, Most Creative Idea, Best Web/App Experience, Best Design, Best Technical Achievement, Biggest Learning Journey, Most Polished Project, Community Loved, and Participation certificates. Prizes often include .xyz domains, DevSwarm subscriptions, Linear Pro subscriptions, and certificates.