Artificial intelligence (AI) has moved from being a buzzword to getting integrated into enterprises, including manufacturing, healthcare, automation services, and more, significantly changing the way we work and our workplaces as well. It is increasingly becoming a defining force across various industries, such as manufacturing, healthcare or automation services. From enhancing decision-making to creating entirely new business models, AI is a force to be reckoned with. With the rise of AI, the need for a workforce that can apply AI and solve complex business challenges is becoming evident.
Recognising the changing work dynamics, The Economic Times with Posspole Catalyst is hosting AI Hackathon, a nation-scale innovation challenge designed to discover and celebrate India's brightest emerging AI talent. The event aims at product managers, architects, consultants, software engineers, data engineers, or AI/ML engineers to solve real-world enterprise challenges using AI.
About ET AI Hackathon
The ET AI Hackathon is a platform where working professionals, including consultants, software engineers and more, will come together to solve real-world challenges. Posspole Catalyst is building the infrastructure for the AI economy. It enables individuals to identify meaningful problems, build practical products and take promising ideas towards real-world impact, commercialization and venture creation.
The ET AI Hackathon offers candidates an exciting opportunity to test their expertise, learn from industry leaders and gain recognition for building AI solutions that address real enterprise needs.
Who can participate?
The ET AI Hackathon is open to students (undergraduate and postgraduate), developers (full-stack, AI/ML, software engineers), and product thinkers (designers, product managers, innovators). Participants can compete individually or in teams of one to four professionals with complementary skills to tackle challenges. Each participant may join only one team.
The path to the national finale
The competition is designed in a multi-stage process which evaluates participants on both technical expertise and practical problem-solving skills. The competition has three stages:
Qualify, Build and Compete!
In the qualifying phase, participants began their journey with signing up on the Unstop platform and completing registration by June 11, 2026. The next step involved building a team of one to four professionals with complementary skills to tackle the challenges together. After that participants undertook the technical assessment to get their core capabilities evaluated. The shortlisted participants then moved on to the building phase, where they chose from the revealed enterprise problem statements that aligned with their team's strength, to develop AI-powered solutions. The solutions were released and the prototypes were submitted through the Unstop platform by 22 July, 2026.
The last phase, Compete , marks the culmination where top teams head to the grand finale on 25 August, 2026 in Hyderabad. Finalists will present their solutions to industry judges or AI experts, standing a chance to win prizes and earn national recognition.
Recognition that goes beyond the competition
Participants have a chance to win a prize pool worth ₹10 lakh, with ₹5 lakh for the grand champion, ₹3 lakh for the first runner-up, and ₹2 lakh for the second runner-up. Beyond the cash rewards, participants gain valuable hiring opportunities by getting noticed by top recruiters and landing interviews at leading AI companies. The event offers an industry showcase to present innovations directly to CXOs and investors from India's top tech ecosystem, along with national visibility through media coverage and featured spotlights. Additionally, all candidates who submit a valid prototype will receive an official participation certificate.
