About this hackathon
* Virtual Participation Available
Future cities don’t build themselves.
They’re constrained by zoning rules no one can analyze at scale; by critical decisions made with incomplete data; by growth happening faster than the systems meant to support it.
And right now, the digital infrastructure behind our cities is decades behind the challenges they face, and we need to re-imagine the operating system of the city itself, with the help of AI.
That’s what this hackathon is about.
Join the Future Cities Institute (FCI) and LangChain community for an AI hackathon where you’ll build real, production-oriented tools to power Canada’s next generation of urban systems.
You’ll work on live, research-backed problem spaces connected to municipalities, policymakers, and active FCI research projects.
To set you up for success, we’ll host virtual pre-hackathon workshops to help you deeply understand both the urban challenges and the AI technologies you’ll use to solve them.
🎯 Problem Statements
Zoning Intelligence Engine – Turn thousands of messy municipal bylaws into a searchable, AI-powered national housing brain.
City Data OS – Design the secure data nervous system that lets planning, transit, engineering, and health finally think as one city.
Live Growth Command Center – Automate Waterloo Region’s path to one million residents with a real-time AI-powered regional readiness engine.
Each participant will receive $50 in LangChain credits to power their hackathon build.
📅 Timeline
🎓 Workshop 1: LangChain + AI Technical Prep Tuesday, March 17, 6:00–7:00 PM (Remote) Hands-on session covering: LangChain foundations Agents, RAG pipelines, and structured outputs Building production-ready AI workflows Technical strategy tips for hackathon success 🌍 Workshop 2: FCI Introduction + Problem Deep Dive Wednesday, March 18, 6:00–7:00 PM (Remote) Led by the FCI research team: Introduction to FCI’s mission and active projects Real-world context behind the challenge tracks How municipalities and policymakers use this work Q&A to help teams refine direction before Hackathon Day
🚀 Hackathon Day — Sunday, March 22 (Hybrid)
In Person @ University of Waterloo 💻 Virtual participation supported
Participants must indicate during registration whether they will attend in person or virtually to assist with team assignments and logistics.
Hackathon Day (in-person, Waterloo): Sunday, Mar 22. 9:30 – 10:00 AM: Doors open & check-in. 10:00 – 10:30 AM: Opening + Q&A with FCI problem statement leads (livestream available) 10:30 AM – 4:30 PM: Focus time (hacking on site; food & drinks provided). 4:30 – 5:30 PM: Solution showcase (Brave Award). 11:59 PM: Submission deadline. Winner Announcement: Sunday, Mar 29 (remote) In Person Capacity: 80–120 participants Maximum Team Size: 4
🏅 Judging & Awards
Panel:
Future City Institute Professors, Researchers and Municipal Collaborators LangChain Experts Industry Professionals
Prizes:
🏆 Brave Award - Best Technical Implementation $2000 LangChain Credits (team) 🏆 Best Solution - Problem Statement 1 $500 CAD gift card (team) 🏆 Best Solution - Problem Statement 2 $500 CAD gift card (team) 🏆 Best Solution - Problem Statement 3 $500 CAD gift card (team)
Event Organizers:
UW Computer Science Club Brave Career
Hosted on Luma