📌About the Event

Bot-a-thon 2026 is not your typical chatbot hackathon. This is a high-intensity, 48-hour building sprint focused on creating AI agents that can think, decide, and execute tasks autonomously. Instead of simple text responders, this challenge pushes developers to construct deployment-ready automation engines capable of independent research, workflows, and action.

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📍 Event Overview

• Category: AI / Autonomous Agents Hackathon.
• Organizer: TechEra
• Venue: Online / Virtual (Streaming live sessions via YouTube).
• Team Size: Solo or up to 4 members.
• Cost: Free (Registration requires approval).

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📅 Important Dates

• Pre-Hackathon Bootcamp: May 1 – May 6, 2026
• Hacking Begins & Opening: May 8, 2026
• Mentorship Rounds: May 8 – May 9, 2026
• Final Submission Deadline: May 10, 2026
• Status: Active Registration (Vetting in progress).

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💰 Prizes & Incentives

• Total Reward Pool: $700+ USDC in direct cash prizes, plus cloud bounties.
• Zynd AI Bounty: 200 USDC cash reward.
• GitHub Challenge: 50 USDC bounty + official swag.
• Apify Perks: $500 in API platform credits + developer goodies.
• Superplane Track: $300 specialized bounty.

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🔥 Why Participate?

• Build Beyond Chat: Shift from static conversational interfaces to true agentic automation that acts independently.
• High Exposure: Pitch your completed build in front of serious AI engineering founders and mentors.
• Direct Deployment: Walk into the weekend with an abstract concept, and walk out with a live, hosted product in your portfolio.
• Global Network: Connect virtually with an obsessed community of AI builders from around the world.

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⚖️ Rules & Eligibility

• Who: Open to all developers, builders, and AI enthusiasts worldwide.
• Requirements: Code must be built from scratch during the 48-hour window.
• Repository: Maintaining a transparent, public GitHub repository is mandatory for evaluation.
• Project Alignment: Solutions must prioritize practical, real-world utility over purely theoretical concepts.