Win up to $5M in Seed Funding | November 14th, 10:00 AM-6:00 PM PT* In partnership with Haas AI Club & "Girls into VC" @ UC Berkeley Join us for an elite hackathon where you'll build cutting-edge projects with Google Gemini & earn 30-minute pitch meetings with top-tier VCs.

The Prize

Top teams will be judged by representatives from Google, Berkeley, Stanford, & multiple venture capital funds.

Grand Prize - VC Pitch Access: A 30-minute private pitch meeting with selected funds from our judging panel - VCs writing 500K-5M seed checks. Pitch your hackathon project or your existing startup.

Google AI Studio Track (sponsored by DeepMind):

In-Person: share of $15K in GCP credits

Online: share of $5K in GCP credits

*Investment not guaranteed. The prize is pitch access only - winning teams gain meeting access but must earn investment through their pitch & business fundamentals.

Event Schedule

10:00 AM - Registration & Breakfast: light refreshments & networking with fellow builders

10:30 AM - Opening Ceremony & Rules Briefing: official rules & competition format

11:30 AM - Hacking Begins: 3-hour build sprint

2:30 PM - Submission Deadline (hard stop): all submissions must be in

2:30 PM - Late Lunch: sandwiches, beverages, & networking

3:30 PM - Semi-Finalists Announced: top teams selected for live pitches

4:00 PM - Live Finals: top teams pitch on stage (5-min pitch + 5-min Q&A)

5:30 PM - Winners Announced

6:00 PM - Event Wrap-Up

Meet the Judges

Google & Google DeepMind

Amit Vadi - Head of Community, Google DeepMind

Joana Carrasqueira - Senior Manager, Google DeepMind

Naman Goyal - Researcher, Google DeepMind

Venture Capital

Nancy Wang - Partner, Felicis

Anne Dwane - Co-Founder & Partner, Village Global

Vig Sachidananda, PhD - Partner, Gradient Ventures

Andy Tang - Founding Partner, Draper Dragon

Shahram Seyedin-Noor - Founder & Managing Partner, Civilization Ventures

Celestine Schnugg - General Partner, Boom Capital

Derick En'Wezoh, MD - Partner, Susa Ventures

Iris Sun - Partner, 500 Global

Ashtan Jordan - Principal, Precursor Ventures

Utkarsh Bajpai - Investor, General Catalyst

Tanya Jomaa - Investor, Redpoint Ventures

Tracy Liu - Investor, M12 (Microsoft's Venture Fund)

Tessa Osborne - Investor, Plug & Play

Berkeley & Stanford

Ben Fong - Berkeley SkyDeck

Devansh Shah - Haas AI Club @ Berkeley

Emile Shah - President, Girls into VC @ Berkeley

Prof. Nikesh Kotecha - Head of Data Science, Stanford Health Care

Online Track

Can't make it to campus? We've added an Online Track for remote participants:

No live streaming or video conferencing - work on your own schedule

Submission deadline: end of day, November 14

Same deliverables as in-person participants

Judging based on traction - same conditions as Phase 2 (7-day social engagement tracking)

Prize pool: $5K in GCP credits

VC pitch access for top submissions

Build with Gemini, ship a prototype, post your demo, & let your network do the talking. Top submissions get 30-minute meetings with funds.

Submission Requirements

All projects must use the Google Gemini model. Each team must submit the following by 2:30 PM sharp:

One-Pager for the team - Short plain text describing your team & your pedigree

One-Pager for the idea - Short plain text describing your idea & prototype

Hosted Prototype - Working demo link (via Google AI Studio & Google Cloud Run)

2-Minute Video - Team introduction & elevator pitch

1-Minute Video - Prototype demo (Playcast)

Code Repository - Link via Google AI Studio sharing

Data Usage & Judging Consent: By submitting your prototype Playcast, you authorize organizers to use your submission in paid social ads (e.g., Facebook). Real-world performance metrics (CPM, CTR, CPC, etc.) will be collected & used as core market validation data for Phase 2 (post-event) judging. You may opt out by notifying organizers prior to submission; data sharing with sponsors & investors is a condition of participation.

Judging Criteria

Technical Feasibility - Does it actually work?

Innovation & Novelty - Is the approach creative or clever?

Real-World Applicability - Would people genuinely use it?

Market Potential & Fundability - Could this become venture-backable?

Go-to-Market Traction - Social engagement on your demo video (likes, shares, views)

Social Engagement Component: Your demo YouTube video must be shared publicly. Engagement counts toward your score:

Phase 1 - Tracked during the hackathon (5:00 PM cutoff)

Phase 2 - Continued tracking for 2 weeks post-event (viral reach + Playcast metrics)

Competition Format

Semi-Finals: All submissions undergo asynchronous review by the judging panel.

Finals: Top teams advance to live presentations - 10 minutes per team (5-min pitch + 5-min Q&A) on stage before the full panel of VCs & special guests. Winners announced at 5:30 PM.

Whether you're a solo developer, have a team, or are already building a startup (some invited participants are at Series A stage), this event is a unique opportunity to showcase your work to decision-makers at leading venture funds.

FAQ

Can I pitch an existing startup? Absolutely! If you win, you can pitch either your hackathon project or your existing company during the 30-minute VC meetings.

What's the team size limit? Up to 5 people.

Can I participate solo? Yes.

Can I participate remotely? Yes! The Online Track has the same deliverables, with submissions due by end of day, November 14. No live streaming - judging is based on 7-day social engagement (Phase 2 conditions). The Online Track has a $5K GCP credits prize pool.

When do VC meetings happen? Winners will schedule 30-minute pitch meetings with selected funds after the event.

What should I bring? Laptop, charger, & your best ideas!

Age Requirement

This event is open to participants 18 years & older. Valid ID may be required for check-in.