Camp Polyhacks

DESCRIPTION Introducing Camp Polyhacks: a Cal Poly and SLO Community social entrepreneurship hackathon that will change your life, guaranteed! In this 12 hour event, teams create an app (or website, or other form of digital media) that will solve a real-life problem and then pitch their product to judges to win awesome prizes. The "problems" are proposed the day of the event. By attending Camp Polyhacks not only will you build something meaningful in a fast-paced environment, you will also gain leadership skills, be guided by professional mentors (many of whom are Cal Poly alumni), have the opportunity to network with companies, win prizes and free swag, and so much more. Did we mention there's free catered food? And we have a chef? Yeah. It's a pretty big deal. Wanna know more? Read some of the Frequently Asked Questions below! What is a Hackathon? A hackathon is a fast-paced event where random teams are formed to create a product within a certain amount of time. Camp Polyhacks is a 12-hour hackathon where designers, developers, entrepreneurs, and other students come together to create a fully functional product. It’s "learn by doing" at its finest. When is it happening? This year's Hackathon will be kicking off on Friday, January 12 at 5pm. Here, teams self-form, ideas are hashed out, and dinner is served. The hacking begins 8am on Saturday until the awards ceremony at 8pm. Full schedule will be announced closer to January. Where will it be? Camp PolyHacks is taking place at the San Luis Obispo Hot House, an incredible 13,000 square foot space in the heart of downtown San Luis Obispo. How much does it cost? Camp Polyhacks is 100% FREE! Do I have to be a Cal Poly student to participate? No! This year we will be expanding our registration to include not only Cal Poly students, but also to SLO community members! (Scroll down the registration types to see the Community Member options.) Driving here? What does the parking situation look like? Downtown San Luis Obispo parking rates apply, whether you are in the parking lots or on the street. You can check parking rates here. What if your not a designer or developer? You don't have to be! This event is open to ALL majors. We welcome everyone who has good teamwork, ideas, attitudes, and the willingness to learn new things. What is "social entrepreneurship"? Social Entrepreneurship refers to the practice of using business ideas and techniques to solve communal and societal problems. What companies are going to be there? Many of our sponsors will be holding booths at the "company alley.” The entire list of companies is TBA.   How is this different than the other hackathons? We'll have a gourmet chef cooking healthy food, it'll feel like a camp, a company alley where you can network with companies, and an opportunity to further develop your business idea with the help of Cal Poly’s Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE) and The Hatchery. This hackathon is about social entrepreneurship. It’s also completely run by students (with supervision, of course).