2nd APCTT Hackathon 2026
AI for Technology Readiness.
A regional challenge for young innovators to build AI-powered tools that make Technology Readiness Level assessment more efficient, consistent, explainable and accessible.
About the Hackathon
Can AI help experts assess technology readiness more efficiently and consistently?
Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs) provide a common framework for understanding the maturity of a technology. However, assessing TRLs can require considerable time and expertise, and different assessors may reach different conclusions from the same evidence.
The 2nd APCTT Hackathon invites teams to explore how AI can support experts by reviewing evidence, recommending an appropriate TRL and explaining the basis for that recommendation. Teams will first develop an AI model through national qualifiers in India, the Philippines and the Republic of Korea. Twenty finalist teams—ten from India, five from the Philippines and five from the Republic of Korea—will then develop working products or services during the final round at Techfest, IIT Bombay.
Organized and supported by APCTT and supporting institutions
The Hackathon is organized by APCTT with support from institutions providing technical expertise, national outreach and event delivery.
APCTT / ESCAP
The Asian and Pacific Centre for Transfer of Technology is a regional institution of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific. APCTT promotes technology transfer, innovation and capacity-building across the region.
Hanbat National University
Provides technical support for the AI challenge and sponsors the prizes for the three winning teams.
NRDC and DOST-TAPI
Support the initiative through TRL expertise, national outreach and engagement with participants and technology-transfer stakeholders.
IIT Bombay / Techfest
Supports outreach and the national qualifier in India and hosts the final round as part of Techfest at IIT Bombay.
Participant community
Stay connected through the official WhatsApp group.
Receive announcements, connect with other participants and follow important updates during the competition.
Registration
Select your national track.
Registration closes on 10 October 2026 at 8:00 p.m. IST / 10:30 p.m. PHT / 11:30 p.m. KST. Country-specific eligibility requirements apply.
Participant orientation
Watch the orientation session.
The session introduces the Hackathon, Technology Readiness Level assessment and the technical approach for the national qualifiers.
Orientation recording · 1 October 2026
Watch the participant orientation covering the Hackathon overview, Technology Readiness Level assessment and the technical briefing.
Key dates Hackathon schedule
Please follow announcements from APCTT and the relevant national track for any country-specific arrangements.
Competition rules Key rules at a glance
Additional technical specifications, evaluation criteria and national-track requirements will be communicated through the applicable competition channel.
Age
Participants must be 35 years of age or younger on 17 December 2026. Minimum-age requirements vary by national track.
Team size
Each team may have up to three members.
National track
Teams must register and compete through the applicable track for India, the Philippines or the Republic of Korea.
Submission opportunities
Each team may submit its Stage 1 model up to two times. The latest valid submission received by the deadline will be treated as the final model.
Stage 1
Teams develop an AI model that assesses Technology Readiness Levels from the provided documents and produces the required supporting outputs.
Final round
Ten teams from India, five from the Philippines and five from the Republic of Korea will develop their models into working products or services.
Participant preparation Preparing your Stage 1 submission
Stage 1 evaluates an assessment module that runs within the organizer-provided Assessment Server Kit. Teams do not need to build a user interface, operate their own server or host an online service for this stage.
What your module must do
- Read one or more English PDF technical reports supplied as read-only files.
- Assess every criterion in the checklist provided through the configuration.
- Identify supporting evidence by document and page.
- Return a TRL from 1 to 9, a justified abstention or a clean failure.
- Produce one valid JSON result in the required output format.
Data and component declarations
- No common training dataset is promised, and training a new model is not mandatory.
- NASA TechPort is an optional and non-exclusive development source.
- Teams may use other legally accessible public or authorized materials.
- Record the source, version, retrieval date, purpose and label origin of materials actually used.
- Declare pretrained models, datasets, retrieval sources, APIs, external components and applicable licences.
Awards and opportunities Prizes and regional recognition
First place
USD 2,000 equivalent
- Cash or a non-cash prize of equivalent value
Second and third place
USD 1,500 equivalent each
- Cash or a non-cash prize of equivalent value
- Prizes sponsored by Hanbat National University
Regional opportunity
Present at an APCTT event in 2027
- One representative from each winning team will be invited
- Travel expenses covered by APCTT
Technology offer
Interested in this technology?
Request further information or explore potential cooperation with the technology provider.
Technology request
Can you help meet this technology need?
Share a relevant technology, expertise or partnership opportunity with APCTT.