HackRice 16 — Rice University's 16th Annual Hackathon

SEPTEMBER 11–13, 2026

Join 800+ of the brightest minds in the nation for 36 hours of relentless creation, collaboration, and building!

What is HackRice?

HackRice is Rice University's annual hackathon. It brings together creators, developers, and designers together under one roof to develop & showcase their creative and entrepreneurial talents in an environment designed for collaboration. Teams of up to 4 form to attack real-world issues, building viable software or hardware solutions within a hyper-focused 36-hour sprint.

This is an excellent opportunity for students to build a network of creators, receive internship & job offers from world-class sponsors, and learn modern tools & systems.

Event Details

• When: September 11th–13th
• Where: Rice Student Center @ Rice University
• Who: 800+ undergraduate builders & innovators
• Admission: 100% free, meals & swag included

Competition Tracks

Tailor your build toward a specific problem domain to qualify for category-specific prize pools.

Judging

Projects are scored across five criteria — here's what the judges will be looking for.

• Relevance: How well the project speaks to its chosen track — a real answer to the problem space it entered.
• Originality & Creativity: Fresh ideas over retreads: a novel angle, a surprising mechanic, a bold bet that pays off.
• Practicality & Impact: Could this ship, and who does it help? Real-world usefulness beats a flashy dead end.
• User Experience & Design: Thoughtful, polished, intuitive — a demo a stranger can pick up and actually use.
• Technical Rigor: The engineering under the hood: how hard it was, how sound it's built, and how much of it works.

Theme & Eligibility

The theme this year is JackRice! Think all things cards, chips, and poker — expect the whole weekend to play out like a night on the casino floor.

Any current undergraduate student over the age of 18 is eligible to apply to HackRice. Since we are an MLH member event, participants must also accept the MLH Code of Conduct. All Rice students are guaranteed acceptance. For non-Rice students, we ask for some background information so that we can invite people who have demonstrated interest and skill.

Teams can range from 1 to 4 hackers. Whether you prefer running solo or assembling a full crew of four, you're perfectly clear to compete.