The theme of this year’s contest is “Build Hope,” and it asks entrants to “show the power technology has to do incredible good and create hope for the future.” Like last year, the seven-month contest is divided into five challenges that run five weeks each from March 12th to October 8th. The first challenge, the “Open Hardware Design Challenge,” is already underway and runs until April 23rd. This is the broadest round, in which participants are encouraged to design the “boldest idea” they can come up with. No prototypes are required, just pictures, charts and theory.
The other rounds are more specific and include:
- Robotics Module Challenge – April 23rd to June 4th
- Power Harvesting Challenge – June 4th to July 16th
- Human-Computer Interface Challenge – July 16th to August 27th
- Innovative Musical Instrument Challenge – August 27th to October 8th
“We’re excited to partner with Hackaday for another year of challenging inventors to be curious, creative and determined,” said David Sandys, Director, Business Ecosystem Development at Digi-Key. “The Hackaday Prize contest aligns with Digi-Key’s vision to encourage and enable innovation in technology that will solve problems and advance civilization. With the amazing projects we’ve seen in previous years, we can’t wait to see what the entrants create this year.”
There are other awards that can be won, as well. No cash prizes for these ones, but there are definite bragging rights – awards like the Diva Plavalaguna Achievement for most unexpected musical instrument, or the Sonic Screwdriver Achievement for the hack that does everything. There’s also the Ender’s Achievement for most brilliant student submission.
The judges for the 2018 Hackaday Prize include Sherry Huss, co-creator of Maker Faire; Mark Rober, former NASA engineer and current popular YouTuber; and Danielle Applestone, CEO of Bantam Tools.
Individuals and teams from countries around the world are eligible to enter, and young hackers, makerspaces, colleges and startups are strongly encouraged to enter. Entrants must be 13 years of age or older. You can find full rules for the Hackaday Prize contest, as well as full descriptions of each of the challenges, here.
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[Images: Hackaday]