2026 International CodeTheCure Hackathon

Overview

The 2026 International CodeTheCure Hackathon is an online competition focusing on cancer and oncology. It aims to inspire the next generation of innovators to create tools that support and advocate for cancer patients globally. Participants are encouraged to develop solutions that fit into one of three primary categories: Detection & Diagnosis, Patient Experience & Support, and Prevention & Education. This hackathon is open to young builders aged 13 and above, specifically targeting students. Professional organizations and companies are excluded from participation. The event is accessible to individuals from all countries and territories, with standard exceptions applied. The hackathon provides an opportunity for participants to apply frontier intelligence to real-world health challenges. The competition features preliminary feedback and submission deadlines leading up to the final judging and presentations. Participants will develop and submit a working demo or prototype, along with a project description, abstract, source code, and a demo video. Finalists will be selected to present their projects to a panel of judges composed of software engineers and technical leaders from various prominent companies. Eight non-cash prizes are available, including virtual internships, software licenses, and VIP memberships, sponsored by various organizations such as n8n, BSD Education, CodeCrafters, .xyz, CodeTheCure, Anakin.io, and Kariaa. The hackathon is designed to be beginner-friendly, fostering education and health-related innovations.

What to build

A project that fits under one of the three categories: Detection & Diagnosis, Patient Experience & Support, or Prevention & Education. The project should aim to turn frontier intelligence into free, accessible tools for cancer patients.

Prizes

Key dates

• Kickoff WeekOct 10 to 12, 2026
• Preliminary Feedback DeadlineOct 20, 2026
• Submission DeadlineOct 28, 2026
• Judging & PresentationsOct 28 – Nov 1, 2026

Eligibility

Ages 13+ only. Students only. Companies/professional organizations excluded from participation. All countries/territories, excluding standard exceptions.

How to enter

1. Register for the hackathon on Devpost.
2. Sign up for the hackathon via the CodeTheCure Hackathon Signup Page.
3. Join the Discord server.

Submission requirements

• Preliminary Feedback (submit by Oct 20 via Devpost): May include abstract, working demo, source code, video, etc. No limitation on what and how much can be submitted.
• Preliminary Submission (submit by Oct 28 via Devpost): Project Description, Abstract (max. 300 word summary), Working Demo/Prototype, Project Source Code (GitHub Link), Demo Video (max. 3 min walkthrough).
• Finals Round (for selected finalists): A presentation deck for a 5-minute presentation and 4-minute Q&A. Presentation may include overall problem/context, methodology, project walkthrough, technical architecture, and projected impacts/feasibility.

Judging criteria

• Detailed preliminary round judging criteria for all 3 categories (Detection & Diagnosis, Patient Experience & Support, Prevention & Education) can be found at https://shorturl.at/n9jBt.

Sponsors & partners