FUTUREMODE AI HACKATHON 2026 — Build the Next Signal
FUTUREMODE 2026 AI HACKATHON / V.01
Coordinates 25.0330° N · 121.5654° E

AI HACK
ATHON 2026

48 hours. 1,000 builders. One city turned into a signal.
Build the next wave of AI at the heart of FUTUREMODE.

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Days
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Hours
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Minutes
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Seconds
Live Registration
1,247
Builders Confirmed
Electric
Signal-Rich
Experimental
Cross-Industry
Builder-Minded
Globally-Local
Immersive
Curated
Intentional
Forward-Thinking
Multi-Dimensional
Electric
Signal-Rich
Experimental
Cross-Industry
Builder-Minded
Globally-Local
Immersive
Curated
Intentional
Forward-Thinking
Multi-Dimensional
01 / The Brief

Build the
next signal.

FUTUREMODE AI Hackathon is the builder core of FUTUREMODE 2026 — Asia's most connected tech festival, descended from Taipei Blockchain Week and engineered by Onboard.

Over 48 hours, 1,000 developers, designers, and founders from 40+ countries converge in Taipei to ship working AI systems — not demos, not slide decks. Real software, judged by the people building the frontier.

This isn't a generic ideation sprint. It's a curated build environment with mentorship from leading AI labs, compute credits that actually let you train, and a room full of people who can take what you build to market.

"Taiwan has always built the future. We make sure the world knows it."

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Builders
Curated cohort
0
Hours
Non-stop building
0
Countries
Global footprint
0
Mentors
From frontier labs
02 / Tracks

Four frequencies.
Pick your signal.

Each track is a distinct frequency — a different angle on what AI can become. Choose one, commit fully, and build something that earns its place on the schedule.

01
Agentic Systems
Autonomous AI agents that plan, execute, and ship real work — not just chat.
Lime · Primary

The Brief

Build AI agents that complete multi-step real-world tasks: research, code, deploy, transact. We're looking for systems where the agent holds context, makes decisions, and produces outcomes a human would have otherwise done.

What We Want

  • Multi-agent orchestration
  • Tool use & function calling
  • Memory that actually works
  • Human-in-the-loop UX
  • Verifiable outputs

Track Prize

$100,000

Plus fast-track interviews with partner AI labs and 12 months of compute credits.

02
Onchain Intelligence
AI × Web3 — decentralized inference, verifiable agents, and the new ownership stack.
Pulse · Energy

The Brief

Where AI meets crypto, real things get built. Verifiable inference, onchain agents, decentralized training, new economic primitives for intelligence. Ship something that couldn't exist without both.

What We Want

  • Verifiable ML inference
  • Onchain autonomous agents
  • Tokenized AI workloads
  • Privacy-preserving ML
  • AI-generated economic mechanisms

Track Prize

$100,000

Plus grants from Web3 ecosystem partners and deployment support.

03
AI Infrastructure
The stack beneath the models — tooling, evals, serving, and the boring stuff that matters.
Frequency · Frontier

The Brief

Models are the headline. Infrastructure is the lede. Build the tooling that makes AI actually deployable, observable, and trustworthy — the layer every other track depends on.

What We Want

  • Eval & benchmarking frameworks
  • Inference optimization
  • Observability for LLM apps
  • Fine-tuning pipelines
  • Safety & alignment tooling

Track Prize

$100,000

Plus infrastructure credits and go-to-market support from dev tool partners.

04
Open Frontier
Wildcard. Anything that pushes AI forward and doesn't fit anywhere else.
Bone · Surface

The Brief

The track for things we can't predict. Novel interfaces, hardware-software fusion, scientific discovery, creative tools, AI for public goods. If it doesn't fit, it belongs here.

What We Want

  • Surprise us
  • Hardware + AI integration
  • Scientific & research applications
  • Creative & design tooling
  • AI for social impact

Track Prize

$100,000

Plus exhibition slot at FUTUREMODE main stage and investor intros.

03 / Prizes

$1M in play.
Zero participation trophies.

$1,000,000
Total Prize Pool · USD
Grand Prize · Best in Show
$250,000
The Signal Award
Awarded to the single project that most defines what comes next. Judged on originality, execution, and potential to reshape a category.
Main Stage Demo Investor Intros 12mo Compute FUTUREMODE Spotlight
Track Winner × 4
$100K
Each Track
Best project in each of the four tracks.
Special Award
$50K
Open Source
Best project shipped under an OSI license.
Special Award
$25K
Student Team
Best all-student team.
Special Award
$25K
Most Experimental
The project nobody expected.
Special Award
$50K
Community Choice
Voted by fellow builders.
Runner-up × 10
$45K
Honorable Mentions
$4,500 each for standout projects.
For Everyone · Non-Monetary
Compute Credits
$10K in GPU credits per team from partners.
API Access
Free tier bumps across participating AI labs.
Mentor Network
80+ mentors from frontier labs and startups.
Main Stage Pass
All-builders pass to FUTUREMODE 2026.
04 / Schedule

The arc
of 48 hours.

From application to main stage — the full timeline. Hackathon kicks off September 17, demos close September 20.

Apr 15
Apps Open
Applications open globally. Solo or team of up to 5.
Jun 30
Apps Close
Final deadline. Rolling decisions after.
Jul 15
Teams Announced
1,000 builders selected. Travel grants confirmed.
Sep 17
Opening Ceremony
Kickoff at FUTUREMODE main stage. Track briefs begin.
Sep 18
Build Day 1
24 hours in. Mentors available. Midnight fuel drops.
Sep 19
Build Day 2
Final push. Submissions close at midnight.
Sep 20
Demo Day
Top 20 teams demo. Winners announced. After-party.
05 / Judges

The people
building the frontier.

LW
Lin Wei
CTO · NovaMind Labs
Taiwan
Former DeepMind researcher. Built one of Asia's first production LLM systems for enterprise.
AK
Aiko Kobayashi
Partner · Ethereal Ventures
Japan
Early investor in 12 AI unicorns. Former ML lead at Sony AI. Deep infrastructure expertise.
RC
Raj Chandra
Head of AI · Stripe
USA
Scales ML systems processing $1T+ annually. Advocate for production-ready AI, not research demos.
MT
Mei Ting
Founder · Modal AI
Taiwan
Built and sold two AI companies. Now building developer tools for the next generation of agents.
SP
Santiago Perez
Research Lead · Anthropic
USA
Core contributor to constitutional AI. Focuses on alignment and safety in production systems.
JK
Jin Kyung
CEO · KryptoAI
Korea
Bridging AI and Web3. Built the largest onchain inference network in Asia.
EM
Elena Moreno
VP Engineering · Hugging Face
France
Leads open-source ML infrastructure. Champion of accessible AI for developers worldwide.
TC
Tsai Chen
Director · MediaTek Research
Taiwan
Hardware-software co-design expert. Pushing the boundaries of edge AI performance.
06 / Partners

Backed by
the builders.

Diamond Partners
Platinum Partners
Gold Partners
07 / Resources

What you get
when you build.

GPU Compute
$10,000 in compute credits per team from our cloud partners. Train, fine-tune, and deploy without limits.
A100/H100 clusters available
API Access
Premium API access to leading model providers. GPT-4, Claude, Gemini, Llama — all unlocked during the hackathon.
No rate limits for 48 hours
Mentor Network
80+ mentors from AI labs, startups, and enterprise. Book 1:1 sessions, get unblocked in real-time.
On-call from Sep 17-20
Datasets
Curated datasets from partners. Real-world data, properly licensed, ready for training and evaluation.
Domain-specific + general
Fuel & Space
24/7 food, drinks, and dedicated build spaces. Quiet zones for deep work, collaboration areas for team syncs.
All meals included
Travel Grants
Need-based travel support for international builders. Up to $1,500 per person for flights and accommodation.
Apply with your application
08 / FAQ

Questions
answered.

Who can apply?
Anyone 18+ with technical skills can apply — developers, designers, researchers, founders. You can apply solo or as a team of up to 5. We accept builders from all countries, though travel grants are prioritized for those coming from outside Taiwan.
Is it in-person only?
The hackathon is primarily in-person in Taipei. We've found the best work happens when builders are in the same room. That said, we may open a limited virtual track for exceptional international applicants who cannot travel — decisions made case-by-case.
What can I build?
Anything that uses AI as a core component. We have four tracks to guide you, but the Open Frontier track exists for things that don't fit. The only requirement: you must ship working software, not a slide deck. Demos must be live, not video recordings.
Can I use pre-existing code?
You can use open-source libraries and frameworks, but your core project must be built during the 48-hour window. Pre-built projects or significant code written before the hackathon starts are not eligible. When in doubt, ask us before the event.
How are projects judged?
Projects are judged on four criteria: Technical Execution (can it actually run?), Originality (is it novel or derivative?), Impact (does it solve a real problem?), and Presentation (can you explain it clearly in 5 minutes?). Each track has dedicated judges with domain expertise.
What happens to IP?
You own everything you build. FUTUREMODE and sponsors claim no IP rights to your project. We may ask to feature your project in post-event content, but that's always with your permission.
How do travel grants work?
When you apply, you can indicate if you need travel support. Grants are need-based, up to $1,500 per person for flights and accommodation. Priority goes to builders from underrepresented regions and students. Decisions are made with your acceptance.

Build the
next signal.

Applications open April 15, 2026. 1,000 spots. No extensions.