The Entrepreneurship Cell of the Indian Institute of Information Technology Pune has continuously kept its word of honor for providing a platform for rising entrepreneurs to showcase their skills and test their entrepreneurial acumen through successful events. Recently, another such grandiose event ‘Hackathon 2k21’ has been victoriously aligned by E-Cell IIIT Pune with its motto “Think. Innovate. Sell. Prosper.” with a noteworthy contribution from its title sponsor Juspay Technologies in association with AlgoUniversity.
Registration for the event, which opened on 8th June 2021, witnessed close to 1600 applicants from more than 300 colleges across 11 nations. Hackathon 2k21 with the strenuous motto – ‘Let’s Hack the Future’ was not an ordinary hackathon restricted only to coding. Brainstorming, super-fun side events like Treasure Hunt and Area 51 made participants gambol over mind-scratching riddles. The atmosphere during the Hackathon gained more energy as different exciting events got unleashed over time. While Googol flex allowed them to flex their surfing skills, the Round Table conference staged heated, intellectual discussions.
On 18th June, problem statements regarding different themes for the first round were released. It required the participants to come up with innovative and codable solution approaches. After the first round workshops were organized to let participants refine their knowledge of emerging technologies. The event gained magnificence from the brand new YouTube series Breaking Conventions, produced by E-Cell IIIT Pune, wherein speaker sessions with stalwarts of entrepreneurship made the attendees abscond from lethargic lockdown monologue to on-field, finding solutions to existing problems. Accomplished entrepreneurs like Mamta Kumari, Manas Kumar Verma, and Ankush Singla furnished the participants with their valuable learnings and insights. IIIT Pune’s very own alumnus Rohan Lekhwani talked on “How to really win a Hackathon?” and rationalized the perspective with which an individual must participate in hackathons. The last session of Breaking Convention with entrepreneur Aman Dhattarwal, founder of Apni Kaksha, motivated everyone to be a learner while learning from every aspect of nature.
31 teams, who had succeeded to limn their exceptional ideas made it to the 50-hour coding sprint of Round 2 which got started on 25th June. It witnessed neck to neck competence among finalists scuffling to code their ideas and provide a workable solution. With such brilliant minds, the eminent and experienced jury from big players in the industry like Robert Bosch Engineering and Dell Technologies had a hard time selecting the winners.
The event has raised the benchmark for newly established IIITs and even other major technical institutes in India. The organizing committee, the participants, or even the jury, everyone had a fulfilling experience at all levels during the event. A month-long, grandiose event came to an end with the knock of the closing ceremony. Winners of each theme as well as side events were announced and awarded with cash prizes. Participants’ positive responses further motivate E-Cell IIIT Pune to put in its heart and soul to present similar awe-inspiring events in the future for the youth aspiring and tussling for oncoming innovation.
Anurag, the Inquisitive Engineer hailing from the House of Precision, is unwavering in his pursuit of perfection on the professional battlefield. Persistent learner, Aesthete photographer. An ardent football enthusiast, memes & Game of Thrones fanatic.
