RULES
- Teams must consist of 2-4 hackers who have been accepted to CentennialHacks 2026. Hacking as a team is preferred, but solo hackers are welcome too.
- All team members must check in at the venue during the designated check-in period, or at some point during the event.
- All programming or construction on your project must occur during the hacking period. Hacking will begin after breakfast at 11:00 AM, and the deadline for project submission is 6:00 PM EDT on Saturday, August 15th, 2026. Do not begin writing code before hacking officially begins; brainstorming, sketching ideas, and team formation beforehand are permitted, but writing or committing code is not.
- Your project must not be submitted to any other hackathons.
- Your team must pitch in person to a panel of live judges during the designated judging period. At least one team member must be physically present at the venue to present; teams that do not show up for their assigned judging slot will not be eligible for prizes, even if a project was submitted on Devpost.
- A draft of your project must be submitted on Devpost by 4:00 PM EDT on Saturday, August 15th. Final submissions must be completed on Devpost before 6:00 PM EDT, when hacking officially ends; submissions received after this time will not be judged, so plan to submit early rather than at the last minute in case of technical issues. Make sure your submission is on time, and don't push any code after the deadline.
- All code must be written during the event (pre-existing open-source libraries and boilerplate starters are fine). You may bring a pre-existing idea, but the implementation itself must happen at the event. If you use any pre-existing code, assets, or open-source libraries, clearly disclose what was reused versus what was built during the hackathon in your submission.
- Projects must follow the MLH Code of Conduct.
- AI tools are permitted, but teams must disclose their usage in their submission.
- Only submit your own work; plagiarized or purchased projects will be disqualified.
Code of Conduct
CentennialHacks is dedicated to providing a safe, inclusive, and harassment-free experience for everyone, regardless of gender, gender identity and expression, age, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, ethnicity, nationality, religion, political views, previous hackathon attendance (or lack thereof), computing experience (or lack thereof), or chosen programming language or tech stack.
We do not tolerate harassment of participants in any form. This includes hacks, talks, presentations, demos, workshops, associated social events, and any related social media or online spaces. Harassment includes offensive comments related to the protected characteristics listed above, sexual images in public spaces, deliberate intimidation, stalking, sustained disruption of talks or events, inappropriate physical contact, and unwelcome sexual attention.
By attending CentennialHacks, participants consent to being photographed and/or video recorded during the event. Photos and videos may be used for event coverage, promotion, and related materials. Participants asked to stop any harassing behavior are expected to comply immediately. Sponsors and partners are also subject to this policy.
If you are being harassed, notice someone else being harassed, or have any other concerns, please contact a member of hackathon staff immediately at the help desk. Participants who violate the code of conduct may be warned, disqualified, or removed from the venue at the organizers' discretion, without a refund where applicable.