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Many congratulations to all the participants and the proud winners of the Inaugural Edition of the HACKcellence Fest. Your talent, passion and the hunger to be a game changer came through splendidly. Keep up the intensity and the desire to take moonshots. We wish you the very best and look forward to your ideas and hacks in the next edition of the HACKcellence Fest. Watch this space.

What is the HACKCellence Fest?

" The Toshiba Kioxia HACKcellence Fest is a committed, purpose filled initiative to establish a Davos for the student universe in M East, Levant, Indian Sub Continent & all of Africa, a virtual meeting of young, bright minds coming together to discover tangible solutions to solve real life problems"

The Inspiration

Some of us can be much better than the one of us

Behind every innovation and disruption is an unresolved pain point as inspiration

Age is truly a number. 10 is the new 20; 20 is the new 40- The potential that resides within our student community is immense.

Touch and Tech can go hand in hand

Technology is a great enabler. Being human and humane more so

The 4Ps Principle: People, Purpose, Planet & Profits can integrate, inspire, influence

A freewheeling, democratisation of ideas, thoughts, concepts on a platform that encourages, facilitates diversity, inclusion and taking moonshots that help humanity


“ We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we create them.” – Albert Einstein

The Objective

Creating a robust and enabling, facilitating platform for the student community in the region for innovation, entrepreneurship and disruption

Instil the core values of conscious capitalism amongst all stakeholders

Develop The Toshiba Kioxia HACKcellence Fest as an annual platform with a core, common cluster of partners with similar vision to unearth hacks and solutions that make life better for humanity


Who can participate in the HACKcellence Fest?

Students from Universities & Colleges in the region*


Students from Schools(Grade 8 and above)**

*Refer to map below

** The HACKcellence Fest is not open to school students from India. In India, its open only to College/University students only*

Which are the countries students can participate from in the HACKcellence Fest?

1 UAE
2 Oman
3 Qatar
4 Bahrain
5 Saudi Arabia
6 Kuwait
7 Lebanon
8 Jordan
9 Egypt
10 Morocco
5 Algeria
11 Tunisia
12 Kenya
13 Tanzania
14 Uganda
15 Rwanda
16 Ethiopia
17 Nigeria
18 Ghana
19 Congo
20 South Africa
21 Zambia
22 Zimbabwe
23 Botswana
24 Angola
25 Mauritius
26 India

How can students participate in the HACKcellence Fest?

A synopsis of the proposed hack or idea to be shared with us

The synopsis can be put together on a one page A4 sheet

The synopsis should explain the idea and what problem it is trying to solve

Upload the synopsis of the hack/idea onto the EasyChair platform on or before 26th of August 2021. Pl access this link http://tiny.cc/hf21 or use the QR code below. You will receive confirmation by email of it being well received.

QR code

Alongwith the synopsis provide contact details(name, name of school/university, country, full address, email id & mobile numbers)

All entries get reviewed/distilled by a jury panel

Shortlisted participants get official intimation from organiser about dates, terms, dos and don'ts

For shortlisted entries, an NDA is signed with them to ensure confidentiality and proprietary rights

How to upload your Hack/idea synopsis on EasyChair?

  1. Create an account on EasyChair our submission platform using this link http://tiny.cc/hf21
  2. Re-click on the link (http://tiny.cc/hf21) to get directed to the Hackcellence Fest submission page
  3. Click on "make a new submission" under author. Please enter the requested details and submit your document

What kind of support will students get from the HACKcellence Fest?

Students will get access to guides and mentors all through the Fest

The seminar/workshop schedules are listed below on this website and will cover the following:


Due Diligence & Whetting of the hack/idea


Managing Financials

Cultivating and Nourishing The Entrepreneurial Mindset

Understanding IPR/Copyrights/Patents

Drawing the Business Model Canvas


Pitching Your Idea to Investors

Cooperative Marketing & Collaborative Advantage

Using Innovation & Design Thinking to enhance the hack/idea


Go to Market Strategy
Talent & Human Capital acquisition strategy for Startups


What kind of hacks/ideas are encouraged in the HACKcellence Fest?

Following are indicative reference only. Students are encouraged to think beyond and come up with their own hacks that are meant to solve real life problems.


Data Storage

Storage Solutions: Preparing for the demand to store 165 Zettabytes of data by 2025.


SMART data storage solutions for Digital Humanism/Digital Therapeutics.


Edge Computing (used in IoT devices and how this can help in Digital Humanism to take care of the Baby Boomers). Possible hack is a camera monitoring the daily walking habits of the elderly, using AI and IoT to detect any abnormalities and connect with their Doctors in real time.


Cloud Computing and the Future of Data Centres.


Health


Wearables


Health tracking & Communication


Healthcare Robotics


Assistive Robotics

Mobility

Smart driving experiences


Inter connectivity between vehicles


Swarm Robotics


Interactive/adaptive traffic control


Infrastructure and Sustainability

Smart Cities


Smart Travel and Tourism


Smart Farming(including remote sensing and harvesting)


Home Automation


Industrial Automation( Remote manipulators, automated manufacturing techniques)E Waste: solutions to reduce, minimise


Food Waste: solutions to reduce, minimise


Water: The New Oil: addressing scarcity, distribution, wastage


Climate Change: going beyond lip service and making it actionable, accountable, achievable


Technology Innovation

Path planning/autonomous movement algorithms


Artificial Intelligence within robots (voice/face recognition, deep learning, neural networks)


Cloud robotics


Communication

Telepresence Robots


Tele-embodied humanoid Robots


What should the synopsis of your idea/hack contain*?


Your full name, gender & age


A copy of your school/university identity card

Is there any research or findings that you have to back your hack/idea?

The name and place of your Educational Institution


An explanation of what your hack/idea is

Why do you feel that your hack/idea should come to market?

Your contact details including Email, Phone Number & address


What problem is the hack/idea trying to solve?


* The entire synopsis should be outlined within one A4 page Word/PDF document

The Judging/Shortlisting Criteria

Submission of hacks/ideas by School students and Submission of hacks/ideas by students from Colleges/Universities will have 2 separate classifications and judging.

The judging and shortlisting criteria will be based on the below:-

Clear identification and understanding of a real world problem

Acuteness of the actual problem or pain point/s

Whether it is a completely new opportunity or the hack/idea is creating room for enhancement/incremental betterment to an existing solution

Market potential of the idea/hack

How practical is the hack and the ability to bring it to market asap

Scalability of the hack & its potential to be launched in as many territories

Investor motivation/Return on Investment potential


Who are the collaborators/partners for the HACKcellence Fest?

Academia & Education

Technology & Knowledge Industry

Banking/Finance/Venture Capital/Angel Funds

Healthcare & Wellness Providers

Retail

Chambers of Commerce/SME Chapters

Infrastructure/Real Estate

Utilities

Travel & Hospitality

Media Platforms

NGOs


The Timeline


Schedule* of Seminars / Workshops / Mentoring sessions

Dates
20/09/2021
27/09/2021
04/10/2021
11/10/2021
18/10/2021
25/10/2021
01/11/2021

*Topics for each session will be outlined and put up by the mid of July 2021.

* All sessions to commence at 12 noon, UAE time.

What will be the Gratification / Awards / Recognition for Students who win?



Cash Prizes (up to US$10,000 for winners)

Scholarships to all winners from & , UAE Campus*

Entrepreneurship Training/Leadership Coaching at a reputed institution**

Incubation by In5 for a period of 1 year

Mentoring for a period of 1 year from start of business

Certificate of Participation/Recognition

Trophy

Branded laptop for every winner

Comprehensive support for Data Storage by Toshiba/Kioxia

Hosting and Software support courtsey AWS and Microsoft




* Scholarship details to be provided upon request. Write into hackcellencefest@groupisd.com to know more.


** For those outside UAE, this will be guided, virtual sessions


FAQs



Is there a fee or charge to apply/participate in the HACKcellence Fest?
No, there is no fee or charge to participate in the HACKcellence Fest
What is the eligibility for participating in the HACKcellence Fest?
Students need to be from the referred geography as outlined in the map shown on this website.
Students from Grade 8 and above in Schools and all students in Colleges/Universities are eligible to apply/participate.
What does one need to submit to enter the HACKcellence Fest?
A brief synopsis(not more than 1 A4 size page) that outlines your hack/idea and what real life problem it is going to solve and how.
Along with that, your name, age, the name of your educational institution, your contact details including email id, telephone number and a scanned copy of your ID card or any official document like passport.
What is the deadline for submission of ideas/hacks for the HACKcellence Fest?
Entries will be accepted up until the midnight(UAE time) of the 26th August, 2021.
Can one apply as an individual or as a group?
There is no restriction on how you can apply. You may apply either as an individual or as a group(as long as the group is not more than 3 students).
How will the shortlisting be done and what is the basis that will be considered for selection?
The criterion for selection of a hack/idea will largely centre around the following:-

Understanding and Sensitivity to a real world problem


Acuteness of the pain point/s experienced at the end user level


Whether it is a Blue Ocean opportunity(completely fresh opportunity) or the hack/idea is suggesting room for enhancement/improvement of an existing solution


Market potential of the hack/idea


The applicability of the hack/idea and how quickly can they be brought to the market


The scalability of the idea and the potential to migrate it to multiple markets


How much can the idea/hack motivate a potential investor to fund it?


What kind of guidance can one expect once my/our idea/hack is shortlisted?
Every individual/group whose hack/idea gets shortlisted will be guided by a group of mentors/guides on how to take their concept to fruition.
This will include mentoring sessions* on:-
Using Innovation & Design Thinking methods to bring your idea/hack to life.
How to Make a Convincing Pitch to Investors- What should your pitch document have?
Understanding the Business Model Canvas to be used for your shortlisted hack/idea.
How to be Managing the Financials of your Start up organisation?
An understanding of a Go to Market Strategy that will help you take your idea/hack to the markets.
Patent/IPR & Copyrights- how to ensure the legal ownership of your hack/idea.
How to hire talent to work with your start up organisation.
Do's and Don'ts of Running a Start Up organisation
How will an idea/hack that gets shortlisted will get its due IPR(Intellectual Property Rights)?
The IPR/Patent etc for any hack/idea that gets shortlisted will be fully and comprehensively rest with the individual or group that has conceptualised and submitted it.
IPR/Patent experts will be part of the mentoring committee and will be at hand to guide every one with the process.

If you have any other question or clarification that you need addressed, we encourage you to write to us at hackcellencefest@groupisd.com . You will receive a response addressing your query within a maximum of 24 hours