The Executive Yuan's Office of Science and Technology on Sunday announced the start of the second-ever Presidential Hackathon, this year exploring the theme "smart nation."
Featuring interdisciplinary hacker teams from across government agencies and the public and private sectors, the competition is designed to facilitate exchanges among data owners, data scientists and experts of different fields. Its objectives are to improve public services by encouraging civil servants toward innovation, engender a hacker culture for the reinvention of government services, and spark Taiwan's creative abilities through the spirit of social innovation.
This year's event includes a special "citizens wishing well" webpage where members of the public can write down their wishes and ideas, and anyone interested or willing can adopt and help make these ideas come true. An international module titled "Enabling Sustainable Infrastructure" has also been added to provide a stage for domestic and international teams to conduct exchanges and learn from one another. Teams from around the world can contribute their strategies and join efforts to solve regional and global issues.
Registration and proposals for the 2019 hackathon will be accepted from March 17 (12pm) through April 14. Five top teams from among all contestants will be selected through three intense rounds of competition. In addition to receiving trophies, the winners will enter a fun, high-tech prize draw to have dinner with a mystery VIP. The award ceremony will be held at the Office of the President on July 21. For more details on the competition, please visit http://presidential-hackathon.taiwan.gov.tw.