Hack The City is a 48-hour, in-person innovation challenge where multidisciplinary teams use data and technology to develop practical solutions to real-world urban mobility challenges. The event takes place from September 23–25, 2026, at NOVA IMS – Campus de Campolide in Lisbon, Portugal.
Participation and Teams Hack The City is a team-based competition requiring teams of between 3 and 5 members. Participants who applied individually or do not yet have a complete team can meet other accepted participants before the hackathon begins to form or complete their groups. Every team member must register individually through the private Devpost page and be added to the project. Each team submits only one project.
The Challenge Teams will select one of the official urban mobility challenges and develop an innovative, feasible, and impactful solution. Participants do not need to arrive with a finished idea; instead, they are expected to collaborate, experiment, build, and learn. During the hackathon, teams will: - Understand the challenge and its users. - Explore available information and data. - Generate and test ideas. - Build a prototype or proof of concept. - Present their solution and its potential impact.
Requirements The final submission must include a working prototype or convincing proof of concept that demonstrates how the proposed solution works in practice. Submissions are due by 10:00 on September 25, 2026. Projects must clearly address the problem, target user, proposed solution, prototype functionality, technologies used, impact, implementation scalability, and testing instructions. Research, generic libraries, templates, and reusable code prepared beforehand are permitted, but pre-developed, challenge-specific solutions cannot be submitted as new work.
Judging Criteria Projects are evaluated based on: - Value & Impact (30%): Solving meaningful problems and creating measurable social, environmental, or economic impact. - Working Demo Quality (25%): Usability and effectiveness of the prototype. - Technical Differentiation (20%): Distinctive use of data and technology. - Creative Storytelling (15%): Clarity and compelling nature of the presentation. - Team Execution & Production Potential (10%): Effectiveness of execution and potential for the prototype to become a deployable product.
Prizes Awards will be given for First Place, Second Place, and Third Place during the final presentations and awards ceremony on September 25.
Venue
NOVA IMS, United States