JacHacks a2Tech is a one-day AI hackathon hosted by Jaseci Labs at the Leinweber Computer Science and Information Building at the University of Michigan on September 26, $9,000 in prizes, and a room full of builders shipping real projects in under 9 hours.

This is the third event in the JacHacks series. Our first two brought together 500+ hackers who shipped 150+ projects, and now we're bringing it to SF with sponsors including NVIDIA, Base44, Lovable, Koyal AI, and NSF.

What makes JacHacks different is it's built around Jac, an AI-native programming language designed for exactly the kind of agentic AI projects everyone's trying to build right now. You don't need to know Jac walking in. We run a workshop that takes you from zero to shipping in an hour. Total beginners, students, professionals, and founders are all welcome, and you don't need a team to sign up. Come solo and we'll match you at team formation.

Beyond the build, the day is stacked: a keynote from Prof. Jason Mars, a resume review + big tech recruiting workshop with Jeff Nguyen, and a YC application workshop with Mehul from Koyal AI (YC F25). Plus meals and snacks all day and merch for every builder.

About the challenge

Build something real in one day. Every project is eligible for track prizes. Judging is live and in person: 4-minute demos in parallel groups, with top teams doing a second-round demo before the closing ceremony. Working demos beat slide decks.

Get started

Join the Discord — all announcements, schedule updates, and team matching happen there. Post questions in #ask-an-organizer.

Get familiar with Jac — optional, but a head start never hurts. Check out jaseci.org and the open-source repo at github.com/jaseci-labs/jaseci. We'll teach you the rest at the workshop.

Brainstorm ideas — thinking ahead is allowed and encouraged. Just remember all actual building happens during hacking hours (10:45 AM–7:15 PM ET).

Requirements

What to Build

Build a working software project using Jac, the AI-native programming language from Jaseci Labs. That's the one requirement: your project must meaningfully use Jac.

Beyond that, build whatever you want. Agentic AI systems, fintech tools, social impact projects, something weird. Pick the track(s) that fit what you built when you submit.

Never touched Jac? We run a workshop that takes you from zero to shipping in an hour, and mentors are available all day. Get a head start at jaseci.org or github.com/jaseci-labs/jaseci.

What to Submit

Submit your project on Devpost before 7:15 PM ET on Saturday, September 26 (hard deadline). Your submission must include:

Project name and description - what it does, what problem it solves, and how it uses Jac)

A link to your public GitHub repo (at least 40% Jac) - all code must be written during hacking hours (10:45 AM–7:15 PM). We will check your commit history.

Track selection - pick one main track, then select any special awards your project also fits

A short demo video (1:30 minutes long)

Host on jachammer.ai (highly encouraged — makes it easier for judges to check out your project; use "sandbox" to host for free)

Star the Jac repo: github.com/jaseci-labs/jac

Do the partial submission checkpoint at 5:50 PM - submit a draft with your project name and team so we can organize judging, then keep editing until the deadline.

Judging happens live and in person: 4-minute demos to a judging panel, with top teams doing a second-round demo. At least one team member must be present to demo.

JacHacks a2Tech

Prize breakdown

Timeline

About

JacHacks a2Tech is a one-day AI hackathon hosted by Jaseci Labs at the Leinweber Computer Science and Information Building at the University of Michigan on September 26, $9,000 in prizes, and a room full of builders shipping real projects in under 9 hours.

Requirements

What to Build