Build The Next Big Thing with AI - Devmarketplace

An AI hackathon for student builders. Pitch a real problem, earn one of 15 places in the build, and ship a working product with AI at its core: code that goes out with your name on it.

This is not an idea pitch competition. The pitch gets you in. After that, every team finishes with software that runs: something you can put in front of an employer, not a slide deck.

Why this hackathon is different

AI agents can now generate a working app in minutes. The bottleneck has moved. It used to be how fast you could type. Now it is whether you can steer what gets generated, verify it, and ship something that holds up in front of a judge. This event is built around exactly that skill.

• A real bar. Six pass/fail requirements, listed below, that most student hackathons don't ask for.
• Real credit. You publish reusable pieces of what you build as code gigs on Devmarketplace, credited to you and your teammates.
• Real tools. Free credits for frontier AI models from providers like OpenAI and Anthropic, and mentors to help you along the way.

About Devmarketplace

Devmarketplace turns reusable code into a first-class, credited unit that both people and AI agents can discover and use.

• Code gigs: snippets, plugins, libraries and templates published as discoverable units, with the creator, source and context attached.
• AI that reuses, not reinvents: the agent recommends approved code gigs selected for what your project actually needs.
• Credit stays attached: the creator and source stay visible through recommendation, build and reuse.
• You control the build: planning mode interviews you first, and larger apps are built one roadmap phase at a time.

🗓️ How it runs

All times are Pakistan Standard Time (PKT).

1. Pitch round, by Friday 16th October 11:59 PM. Write up your idea as a SPEC.md in a public GitHub repository and submit it through the pitch form.
2. Top 15 teams announced, Saturday 17th October 11:59 PM.
3. In-person kickoff: Monday 19 October, 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM, at NED University, Karachi. The build starts at 9:00 AM, with problem sign-off, a rules briefing, AI credits and mentors in the room. Before you leave, you show a working app in progress on Devmarketplace.
4. Online build: 19 to 22 October. Keep building from wherever you are, with mentors and organisers on Discord.
5. Code freeze and submission: Thursday 22 October, 11:00 PM, here on Devpost.
6. Online judging. Judges test every deployed app and review the code, then the winners are announced.

👥 Who can join

NED University undergraduates in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Computer Engineering, Information Technology and related programs, in teams of 2 to 4. Free to enter. Devmarketplace funds the event.

🏆 Prizes

• 🥇 Winner: PKR 70,000, plus a Founding Dev subscription, public recognition and internship consideration
• 🥈 Runner-up: PKR 30,000, plus a Founding Dev subscription, public recognition and internship consideration
• 🏅 3rd to 5th place: Founding Dev benefits and internship consideration
• ⭐ Every participant: Founding Dev access on Devmarketplace, kept after the event

Internship consideration is based on interviews and remains at the discretion of Devmarketplace. Placing in the hackathon is not by itself an offer.

What is a Founding Dev? Devmarketplace's early-access membership: a Founding Dev badge on your profile, recognition as a founding developer of the platform, and extra benefits including free AI credits.

✅ What every project must have

Miss one and the project is not scored. Full details are in Submission Requirements.

1. AI at the core: live calls to an AI model in the main user journey.
2. A real database: user data that survives a restart.
3. Working authentication: sign-up, sign-in and 2FA, with each account seeing only its own data.
4. One complete journey: sign up, use the AI feature, the result is saved, sign back in and it is still there.
5. Public repo and docs: a README, a spec, an AI disclosure, and commits spread across the event.
6. Two published code gigs on Devmarketplace, written during the build.

🏁 Get started

1. Register for this hackathon here on Devpost. Every team member registers individually.
2. Form your team and submit your pitch by Friday 16th October 11:59 PM. The steps are in Submission Requirements.
3. Create your own account on devmarketplace.com before the kickoff. It activates your Founding Dev status and your AI credits.
4. Join our Discord: https://discord.gg/BZ56psUvDn

Hosted by

Devmarketplace in collaboration with the Faculty of Information Sciences & Technology, NED University of Engineering & Technology, Karachi.

Build faster. Credit the builders.