Hackathon Rules

• Registrations Open: 10th June 2026
• Hackathon Period (Submission Period): June 24, 2026 (12:30 BST) – July 7, 2026 (23:59 BST)
• Submissions Due: July 7, 2026, 23:59 BST
• Judging Period: July 8 – July 14, 2026
• Winners Announced: On July 18, 2026

All dates and times are in British Summer Time (BST). No extensions will be granted. Late submissions will not be accepted under any circumstances.

Sponsors:

• Amazon Web Services, 410 Terry Avenue North, Seattle, Washington 98109 United States
• Temporal
• Aikido Security

Administrator: The Coding Kitty ("Administrator", "Organiser", "we", "us", "our") administers and operates the hackathon.

Administrator Contact: contact@thecodingkitty.com

The hackathon IS open to:

• Individuals who are at least 16 years old at the time of entry. If you're under 18, a parent or guardian must consent to your participation.
• Participants from anywhere in the world. The hackathon is fully virtual.
• All skill levels. No prior experience required.
• Individuals participating solo, or teams of up to 2 people.

The hackathon IS NOT open to:

• Individuals who are residents of, or located in, a country or territory where participation in online competitions is prohibited by local law.
• Organisers, judges, or anyone directly involved with the design, production, or administration of the hackathon, and members of their immediate family or household.
• Any individual whose participation would create a real or apparent conflict of interest, as determined by the Organiser in its sole discretion.

A Discord account is required to register. By entering, you represent and warrant that you meet all eligibility requirements.

• Teams consist of 1–2 people maximum. Solo entries are permitted.
• Register by signing in with Discord on the hackathon website. This constitutes your entry into the hackathon.
• You may invite one partner via email from your dashboard. They must accept and register to join your team.
• You can form a team any time before you submit. Use the Team Finder board to find someone.
• For team entries, the team leader (the person who created the team) is the Representative authorised to submit on behalf of the team.
• Each individual may only be a member of one team.
• Each team may submit only one project.

By entering a submission on behalf of a team, the Representative warrants that they are authorised to act on behalf of the team and that all team members agree to these Official Rules.

Your project must relate to the theme. Build something that drives positive impact for cats, cat owners, or the broader cat community. You may interpret the theme creatively, but it must connect to cats in some meaningful way.

See the Theme Reveal page for detailed guidance and ideas.

Every submission must include all of the following:

1. A ZIP file of your project (maximum 100 MB), including a project document that describes your work.
2. A video demonstration link showing your project functioning. The video should be under 5 minutes.
3. A GitHub repository link containing all source code necessary to run your project. If the GitHub repo is private, it is required for you to download that GitHub repository and include it inside the ZIP file.

Additional requirements:

• The project must be capable of being installed and running consistently on the platform for which it is intended.
• All submission materials must be in English. If your project UI is in another language, provide English-language documentation and video narration.
• Your video must not include third-party trademarks or copyrighted music unless you have permission.
• If your project requires login credentials or special access to test, include testing instructions in your submission.
• Judges must be able to access and test your project free of charge for the duration of the Judging Period.

Solo participants submit directly from their dashboard. For team entries, the team leader (Representative) handles the submission.

• Your project must be original work created during the Submission Period.
• It must be functional and work as described in your video demonstration and text description.
• It must relate to the theme. Projects with no connection to the theme are not eligible.
• You may use any tech stack (web, mobile, CLI, hardware, AI, etc.).
• AI tools are permitted (Kiro, GitHub Copilot, ChatGPT, etc.), but your project must demonstrate original thinking, creativity, and effort. Projects that are entirely AI-generated with no meaningful human direction will score poorly on Innovation.
• Third-party libraries, SDKs, and APIs are permitted, provided you comply with their licence terms and are authorised to use them.
• Your project must not contain malicious code, viruses, spyware, or harmful content.
• Your project must not violate the intellectual property rights, privacy rights, or any other rights of any third party.

The Organiser reserves the right to request access to your project for testing at any time during the Judging Period. Failure to provide access may result in disqualification.

• You may update or replace your submission at any time before the submission deadline (July 7, 2026, 23:00 BST).
• Once the Submission Period has ended, no changes or alterations to your submission are permitted.
• The Organiser may, at its sole discretion, permit modifications after the deadline solely for the purpose of removing material that infringes third-party rights or discloses personal information.

Eligible submissions will be evaluated by a panel of judges selected by the Organiser. Judging is anonymous: judges only see your Reference ID, not your name or identity.

Each category is scored 0–100 and weighted as follows:

Judges may score in one or more rounds at the Organiser's discretion. Judges are not required to test the project and may choose to judge based solely on the text description, images, and video provided. The scores from the judges will determine the winners. The decisions of the judges are final and binding.

Tie-breaking:

If two or more submissions are tied, the tied submission with the higher Technical Execution score will be considered the higher-scoring submission. If a tie remains, Innovation & Creativity is used as the next tiebreaker, and so on through the remaining criteria in the order listed above. If submissions remain tied on all criteria, the panel of judges will vote.

The following prizes will be awarded to the winning submissions:

Prize conditions:

• Prizes are non-transferable. The Organiser reserves the right to substitute a prize of equivalent or greater value.
• The Organiser will not award a prize if there are no eligible submissions for that prize category.
• For team entries, the cash prize will be divided equally among all team members and sent to each participant individually.
• Winners may be required to provide identification or complete verification forms before receiving their prize.
• Prizes will be delivered within 60 days of winner verification being completed.
• Winners are solely responsible for any taxes, fees, or charges associated with receiving the prize in their jurisdiction, including income tax, currency exchange fees, and any required government reporting.
• The award of any prize is subject to verification of the winner's identity, eligibility, and role in creating the submission.

• All submissions remain the intellectual property of the individuals or teams that created them. You retain full ownership of your code.
• By submitting an entry, you grant the Organiser a fully paid, non-exclusive, worldwide licence to use the submission for the purposes of judging, promoting, and publicising the hackathon and its results, for a period of three (3) years from the date of submission.
• Your submission must: (a) be your original work; (b) be solely owned by you or your team; and (c) not violate the intellectual property rights or other rights of any third party, including copyright, trademark, patent, privacy, or publicity rights.
• You may use open-source software and libraries provided you comply with their licence terms and your project builds meaningfully upon them.
• By submitting, you represent and warrant that your submission does not contain any viruses, Trojan horses, worms, spyware, or other harmful code.

By participating in the hackathon, you consent to the Organiser's use of your name, username, profile picture, project name, project description, and submission materials for promotional purposes. This includes but is not limited to: social media posts, website features, blog articles, and community showcases, during the hackathon period and for three (3) years thereafter, unless prohibited by law.

If you do not wish to be featured, contact us at contact@thecodingkitty.com before or during the hackathon and we will exclude you from promotional materials where reasonably possible.

All participants must adhere to the following standards:

• Be respectful to other participants, judges, and organisers at all times.
• No harassment, bullying, threats, or discrimination of any kind, including on the basis of race, gender, sexual orientation, disability, religion, or national origin.
• No plagiarism, cheating, or attempts to game the judging system.
• No spam, malicious content, or attempts to disrupt the platform or other participants' work.
• No impersonation or misrepresentation of identity.
• Comply with all applicable laws and regulations in your jurisdiction.

Violations will result in immediate disqualification and a permanent ban from future events. The Organiser reserves the right to remove any content or participant that violates this Code of Conduct at any time without notice.

The Organiser reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to disqualify any Entrant who:

• Submits pre-existing work that was not created during the Submission Period.
• Violates any provision of these Official Rules or the Code of Conduct.
• Submits harmful, malicious, infringing, or plagiarised content.
• Is a member of more than one team.
• Tampers with or attempts to manipulate the entry process or judging.
• Acts in a manner that is unsportsmanlike, inappropriate, or not in the best interests of the hackathon.
• Fails to provide access to their project for testing during the Judging Period when requested.

Disqualification decisions are made at the sole discretion of the Organiser and are final. No refund, compensation, or appeal is available in respect of disqualification.

By entering the hackathon, you agree to the following:

• You will be bound by these Official Rules and the decisions of the Organiser and judges, which are final and binding in all matters relating to the hackathon.
• The relationship between you and the Organiser is not a confidential, fiduciary, or other special relationship.
• You release, indemnify, and hold harmless the Organiser, its affiliates, and their respective officers, directors, employees, agents, and representatives (the "Released Parties") from and against any and all claims, expenses, and liabilities (including reasonable legal fees) arising out of or relating to: your entry or participation in the hackathon; the creation or submission of your entry; acceptance, use, or misuse of any prize; or any violation of these Official Rules.
• You acknowledge that participation in the hackathon is voluntary and at your own risk.

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, the Released Parties shall not be liable for:

• Any incorrect or inaccurate information, whether caused by electronic or printing error, or by any equipment or programming associated with the hackathon.
• Technical failures of any kind, including malfunctions, interruptions, or disconnections in internet connectivity, network hardware or software, or the hackathon website.
• Unauthorised human intervention in any part of the entry process or the hackathon.
• Technical or human error in the administration of the hackathon or the processing of submissions.
• Any injury or damage to persons or property arising directly or indirectly from participation in the hackathon or receipt or use of any prize.
• Incomplete, late, misdirected, damaged, lost, or corrupted submissions.

The Organiser's total aggregate liability in connection with the hackathon shall not exceed the total value of the prize(s) available. Nothing in these rules excludes liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, fraud, or any other liability that cannot be excluded by law.

• These Official Rules and any disputes arising out of or in connection with the hackathon shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of England and Wales, without regard to conflict of law principles.
• Any disputes shall be resolved individually. You agree not to bring or participate in any class, consolidated, or representative action.
• The parties agree to first attempt to resolve any dispute informally by contacting the Organiser at contact@thecodingkitty.com. If the dispute cannot be resolved within 30 days, either party may pursue formal proceedings.
• Under no circumstances will any Entrant be entitled to punitive, incidental, or consequential damages, or any damages other than actual out-of-pocket expenses associated with entering the hackathon.

• The Organiser reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to cancel, suspend, or modify the hackathon, or any part of it, in the event of technical failure, fraud, force majeure, or any other factor not anticipated or within its control.
• If there is any discrepancy between these Official Rules and any other hackathon materials (including the website, social media, or promotional content), these Official Rules shall prevail.
• The Organiser's failure to enforce any provision of these Official Rules shall not constitute a waiver of that provision.
• If any provision of these Official Rules is found to be illegal or unenforceable, it shall be replaced by a valid provision that most closely reflects the original intent, and the remainder of these rules shall continue in full force.
• Proof of submission is not proof of receipt by the Organiser. If your submission is lost or corrupted, your sole remedy is to request the opportunity to resubmit before the deadline.
• Any attempt by any person to undermine the proper conduct of the hackathon may be a violation of criminal and civil law, and the Organiser reserves the right to seek remedies and damages from any such person to the fullest extent permitted by law.

Once judging is complete, eligible participants may download a participation certificate from their dashboard. To be eligible for a certificate, you must have submitted a valid project and received a score during the Judging Period. Registering without submitting does not qualify for a certificate.

The Organiser may amend these Official Rules at any time prior to the start of the Submission Period. Amendments will be posted on this page and announced via Discord. Any amendment becomes effective at the time of posting. Once the Submission Period has begun, no material changes to the judging criteria, eligibility requirements, or prize structure will be made without notification to all registered participants.

If you have questions about any rule before the deadline, submit a written request for clarification to contact@thecodingkitty.com.

Questions about these rules? Contact us at contact@thecodingkitty.com or ask in the Discord server.

Information collected from participants is subject to our Privacy Policy. By entering, you consent to the collection and use of your personal information as described therein for the purpose of operating and publicising the hackathon.