Rakathon 2024

Q. Do I need to pay any money to register for the Hackathon?
No. Registration for Rakathon is FREE

Q. Do I need to have any specific qualifications to be a participant for the Hackathon?
There is no qualification required to participate. If you love to code, you are more than welcome to participate in the Hackathon.

Q. Can multiple ideas be registered for one team?
Multiple ideas are not allowed from one team. Only one idea can be submitted per team.

Q. Can we change team after round 1 & 2?
No, you cannot change your team once registered

Q. I have an idea not related to the problem statement but relates to the theme, can I still go ahead and register it
Yes, you can go ahead and register your idea under a theme which has the maximum coherence to your idea.

Q. Can deadline be extended for the idea registration?
No, the deadline can’t be extended for the idea registration.

Q. Can I be registered as a participant of 2 teams at once for the Event?
No, you cannot be a registered as a participant of 2 teams at once for the Event.

Q. Will I be getting participation certificate?
All shortlisted teams will get participation certificate

Q. Does one have to be online and available for the entire duration of the Hackathon?
No, one does not need to be logged in or be online for the entire duration. You can develop the application on your local system based on the given themes and then submit it on Hackerearth, on the specific challenge page.

Q. Do I need to give a demo for the product that I have built?
For phase I (Idea submission), demo is not required. For Phase II, demo of your application that is a functional one is required.

Q. If it is a team submission, does that mean all team members will have access to work at the same time?
Yes, all team members can login from their account and do application submission on the Hackerearth tool.

Q. How many people should a Team be?
A team can consist of 2 to 4 members for registration

Q. Do we sign up as individuals or as a team?
You should sign up as an individual and then you can invite other members to your team.

Q. Who will own the IP (Intellectual Property) Rights of the product/code that I have built?
Developer/participant will own the IP (Intellectual Property) Rights of the product/code.

Q. How do I know if my idea was shortlisted?
For shortlisted candidates, notifications will be shared through Hackerearth.

Q. How will teams be judged/what are the judgement criteria?
Teams will be judged on the following criteria
• Novelty / Originality
• Practicality / Feasibility
• Usefulness / Desirability
• Sale-ability / Biz Viability
• Scalability / Platformization
• Privacy Handling

Q. Will there be any Training?
No, there won't be any kind of training for Rakathon.

Q. Will I be able to sell/commercialise my projects after the hackathon?
It is up to the developer, but Rakuten reserves no responsibility about the veracity of the product being sold.

Q. What is the process of Rakathon'24?
Event Flow:
• Form teams and register (submit) your idea summary in pdf, word, txt, etc. format. Remember to mention the theme and problem statements the idea pertains to, how the idea proposes to solve the problem, the business impact of the idea, as well as the technological advancement proposed by your idea. Registration dates from 10th July 2024 to 31st July 2024.
• Based on ideas submitted, top 100 ideas/teams will be shortlisted for the 24-hrs Rakathon. Shortlisted teams will be informed on 15th August 2024.
• Shortlisted teams are required to attend the 24-hr physical hackathon on August 30th and 31st from 8:00 AM onwards in Rakuten India Office, Bangalore. Here they will be required to develop (code/hack) their idea and create a functional prototype/software solution/etc. which can be presented (demoed) to jury members. The same has to be uploaded in the tool as well.
• Out of the shortlisted ideas, top 10 will be selected by Jury based on the idea presentation/demo.
• Top 10 teams will present to Final Jury members to decide the winners.
• Winners to be announced by 7:30 PM IST on 31st August, 2024.

Q. Do we need to have the entire idea fully working?
The entire idea need not be fully implemented. However, the submission should be functional so that it can be reviewed by the judges.

Q. Where will the Hackathon take place?
The Hackathon will take place in Rakuten India Crimson House, Bangalore.

Q. Are we allowed to use third party components like open source libraries etc. to implement a solution - are there limitations on component?
No, there aren't any limitations but any kind of open-source libraries, KPI frameworks for the solution will not be provided by Rakathon organising team or Rakuten.

Q. Are there any prerequisites for the Rakathon (specific software, etc)?
No, there aren't any prerequisites for the Rakathon.

Q. How do I submit what I have developed for the Hackathon?
Idea submission can be in any format- doc, ppt, docx, txt, pdf, etc. and code submission should be uploaded in Zip format

Q. How is the environment? Will your environment support any language? Will you provide any IDE and DB for us to work on ideas?
We do not provide any environment support. No, IDE and DB will not be provided by us for you to work on ideas.

Q. Do I get free credits for using cloud services?
No, you won't be getting any free credits for using cloud services.

Q. Who shall I connect if there is any query regarding HackerEarth?
Connect with our support team at support@hackerearth.com

Q. Who shall I connect if there is any query regarding the event?
For any queries, reach out to us at admin-rakathon-2024@mail.rakuten.com

Q. Can the challenge be attempted from mobile platform?
No, the challenge can only be accessed through a laptop/desktop

Q. Some of my team members cannot make it in person to the Rakathon. Can I collect the goodies on their behalf?
Goodies are ONLY for those participants who attend the Rakathon in person, on both days (throughout the hacking duration)

Q. Will Rakuten take care of my travel and accommodation arrangements for the Rakathon?
No. Shortlisted participants will have to make their own travel and accommodation arrangements. The night of Aug 30^th thru Aug 31^st however, you’d be at the Rakuten premises and necessary arrangements to rest, and refresh would be made as you go about hacking