Hack the Arts

Overview

Hack The Arts is a global, online hackathon designed to explore how technology can unlock entirely new forms of creative expression. The central theme challenges participants to "Create art that couldn’t exist without technology," moving beyond traditional art replication to define new artistic mediums through interactivity, computation, and intelligent systems. Participants are encouraged to build projects such as generative art, interactive experiences, creative coding tools, or AI-assisted artistic workflows. The focus is on systems that respond, evolve, or engage users in meaningful ways, rather than static outputs. The competition encourages experimentation and creative risk-taking in understanding technology's role in art creation and experience. This hackathon is open to both beginners and experienced builders, including developers, designers, and artists. The objective is to facilitate learning, building, and pushing the boundaries of what art can be in a digital world. The event is beginner-friendly and features open-ended design challenges.

What to build

Participants must build a project that aligns with the theme: “Create art that couldn’t exist without technology.” The project should combine code and creativity to produce an interactive, generative, or computational form of art. This can include creative coding tools, AI-assisted artistic systems, immersive experiences, data-driven visuals, or experimental digital mediums. Projects should emphasize interactivity, evolution, or user engagement rather than static outputs. All work must be created substantially during the official Build Period.

Prizes

Key dates

• DeadlineAug 1, 2026 @ 11:45pm EDT

Eligibility

Participants must be between 13 to 18 years old and currently high school students. Companies and professional organizations are excluded from participation. The hackathon is open to participants from all countries/territories, excluding standard exceptions.

How to enter

1. Register for the hackathon on Devpost and join the Discord server.
2. Form a team of up to four participants or work individually.
3. Brainstorm ideas that align with the theme and explore creative directions.
4. Start building during the official Build Period using any tools, frameworks, or technologies.
5. Attend optional workshops, mentorship sessions, and community events for guidance and inspiration.
6. Submit your project before the deadline, including a demo, source code, and project description.

Submission requirements

• A working project demo, provided as a live link or a recorded video
• A publicly accessible source code repository
• A written project description explaining the concept, implementation, and technologies used
• Clear attribution for any third-party assets, libraries, or APIs used

Judging criteria

• Creativity & Originality (30%): Is this a new form of art or interaction?
• Use of Technology (25%): Does the project meaningfully leverage code/AI?
• Interactivity & Experience (20%): Is the project engaging or immersive?
• Execution (15%): How polished and functional is it?
• Theme Alignment (10%): Does it embody “art that couldn’t exist without technology”?

Sponsors & partners

Resources

• Full Rules
• Discord Server