Visit our website: https://cosmohacks.com/
Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Xu6UKtPYjB
Follow our Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cosmohacks2026/

Cosmo Hacks is a free month-long online hackathon for middle school, high school, and college students aged 13+, taking place from December 19, 2026 to January 18, 2027.

Build a useful project that solves one clear problem for students, schools, or local communities.

Your project can be an app, game, website, tool, experiment, or another creative solution. Focus on identifying a real problem and building something that could make student or community life easier, better, or more effective.

Students can compete alone or in teams of up to four, with all teammates in the same division. Beginners are welcome, and participants will have access to workshops, mentors, sponsor resources, and support through Discord throughout the event.

Cosmo Hacks has a confirmed $370 cash prize pool (more cash will be added soon) and over $150,000 in sponsor benefits, including software credits, API credits, cloud tools, domains, memberships, scholarships, workshops, and other resources.

We’ll email certificates to all participants, judges, and mentors after the event.

Building runs December 19, 2026 at 10:00 AM CST through January 18, 2027 at 4:00 PM CST. See the full event schedule.

Theme and AI: All projects must address student or community life. AI tools are allowed; disclose how you used them and be ready to explain your work. AI use does not automatically lower your score.

Eligibility: Required submission materials, original work, and the deadline are checked separately, not awarded extra points.

All times are CST (UTC−6). You have about a month to build. Registration remains open through the submission deadline.

• December 19, 2026 at 10:00 AM: Opening Ceremony and FIRST introduction; the event, building, and Devpost submissions open.
• December 19 workshops: Momen at noon, Formaloo at 2:00 PM, ProtoFlow at 6:00 PM.
• December 20 workshops: Defold at 10:30 AM, Building with AI at 4:00 PM, Doriax Engine at 6:00 PM.
• December 21–January 18: Continue building and use available sponsor resources. Mentor help depends on availability.
• January 18, 2027 at 4:00 PM: Registration, project submissions, workshop attendance forms, and recording takeaways due. Building ends and final submissions are locked.
• January 18–22: Eligibility checks and remote judging, beginning after submissions close.
• January 23 at 10:00 AM CST / 4:00 PM UTC: Closing Ceremony and winners announced.

Both the Opening Ceremony and Closing Ceremony will be hosted live or have their slides published on the website, Devpost, and Discord.

Both divisions are ranked separately using five criteria worth 20 points each: creativity, functionality, technical implementation, impact and theme fit, and presentation. Judges score projects on external score sheets using the 0–20 rubric; organizers average the project scores and add verified workshop bonuses separately. Earn 3 bonus points per team per workshop, verified through the attendance form. Attend live to qualify. If a time zone conflict prevents live attendance, explain it on the form, watch the recording, and submit a short takeaway. The bonus is capped at 3 points per team per workshop, regardless of how many teammates attend. Workshop attendance forms and recording takeaways are due January 18, 2027 at 4:00 PM CST. Remote judging takes place January 18–22. The event remains fully online.

Read the full rubric, score guide, workshop bonus, and tie-breakers.

Our Discord invite referral program awards a $5 Amazon gift card for first place only. Join Discord for tracking and full details. This award is separate from project judging.

Use our builder guide for project starting points, a submission checklist, and demo tips. The Resources tab brings together helpful event links, sponsor offers, and ways to find teammates or ask questions.

Robotics teams, student groups, and companies can support student prizes or discuss an educational session. See partnership options or email [email protected].

We’re currently looking for mentors and judges for Cosmo Hacks 2026. Interested in volunteering at our online event? Email [email protected] with your background and availability.

• Creativity — 20 points
  Is the idea original, or does it improve an existing solution in a thoughtful way?
• Functionality — 20 points
  Do the main features work? Does the demo show a usable project?
• Technical implementation — 20 points
  Is the project built well? Can the team explain its code, tools, and technical decisions?
• Impact and theme fit — 20 points
  Does it address a clear problem for students, schools, or communities? Would the intended users benefit?
• Presentation — 20 points
  Does the submission clearly explain the problem, solution, how it was built, and demonstrate it working?
• Workshop attendance — bonus points
  3 bonus points per team per workshop, verified via the attendance form. Live attendance required. If a time zone conflict prevents this, explain on the form, watch the recording, and submit a short takeaway. Maximum 3 points per team per workshop.