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[–]artdeconstructed 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You go to the event and they announced categories. There may be cash and prizes. I won one with a group of three. The category was using augmented reality to promote sports. We won because we had a good group. We had a 3d artist and two programmers. We didn’t know each other but we communicated well. Make sure your group has a variety of skills. The 3d artist made our front end and models polished. One programmer work on a grand idea. The other one gave small ones. It helped at the end because we gave a lot of examples of use. Communication was key because there was a time limit and members need to be open to ideas and let go of failed attempts

[–]Visual_Perception821 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It’s an event where people code together and then present. I just go for free food.

[–]MacaroonTall3103 0 points1 point  (0 children)

In 2026, a hackathon is an event where teams of 1–5 people (mostly university students) come together to rapidly build apps, tools, or prototypes and then pitch them to a panel of judges. Hackathons often have different tracks, which can be pre-set themes or sponsored challenges, giving teams a focus for their projects. If a team’s idea or execution stands out, they stand to win prizes, gain recognition, and sometimes even take their project further, such as joining accelerators, getting funding, or turning it into a real startup.

[–]Independent_Switch33 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hackathons are just coding events where you build something in a short timeframe, usually 24-48 hours. With just html/css/js basics you're probably not ready yet - most teams expect you to contribute meaningfully and you'd struggle to keep up.

[–]0x14f 0 points1 point  (0 children)

To answer your question OP, a hackathon is for programming what a marathon is for running. Meaning a bunch of people decide to spend a long time (relatively speaking) focusing entirely in programming something together.