While this article focuses on public virtual hackathons, it's worth noting that companies also host private hackathons exclusively for their teams and guest hackathons for select partners and customers.
Internal hackathons enable collaboration and innovation among global teams, without having to bring team members together in person from around the world. Internal hackathons let teams set aside dedicated time to experiment, solve problems, and build solutions for the company outside of their day-to-day work.
Related: Learn how to run a company-wide internal hackathon.
Guest hackathons allow you to indiatelegram screening improve product adoption, drive revenue, reduce churn, and gather highly specific insights from your existing customers. Holding these hackathons virtually makes it easier to scale these events and connect with customers and partners in different locations.
Related: See how SAP connects with clients through its guest hackathons.
Real-world example of transitioning to virtual hackathons
In 2020, the global pandemic prompted Finastra, a global fintech company with almost a decade-long history of in-person hackathons, to transition its events to a virtual format. Partnering with Devpost, Finastra launched its first virtual hackathon, "Hack To The Future 2020." The event was a resounding success, attracting over 4,000 participants and generating innovative solutions.
After the massive turnout of its first-ever virtual hackathon, the team at Finastra continued hosting virtual events. According to Chirine Ben Zaied, Head of Innovation at Finastra, the switch to remote events helped her team tap into the “magic” of hackathons.
“We had amazing stories,” said Chirine Ben Zaied, Finastra. “With hackathons, what happens during the event and the quality of projects is all out of your control after you launch. But we always saw magic happen.”
Hackathons also help Finastra gain insights from working with a wide audience.
“It’s very refreshing from an innovative perspective,” said Chirine. “From what we’d like to do, what projects we’d like to invest in, the partners we work with, and the clients. On the brand side, you have all the participants sharing their stories because they’re so excited to have participated and then they won—it’s all unexpected and that’s the hackathon magic.”