From 17 to 19 October, the EUDIS Defence Hackathon will take place at CometLab on the NL Space Campus in Noordwijk. Students, researchers, start-ups and companies will spend the weekend working together on innovative solutions for European challenges in defence and space. Teams will also compete for prize money and a place in the European follow-up programme. The registration deadline is 10 October at 09:00 CEST.

The Dutch edition is part of a total of eight national hackathons taking place simultaneously across Europe. In Noordwijk, participants will be guided by mentors and experts from, among others, the Ministry of Defence, TNO, NLR, NL Space Campus, SBIC Noordwijk and InnovationQuarter. The event is organised by Groundstation.Space.

Three challenges

Teams can choose from three challenge categories:

• Protection of Space Assets: protecting navigation, communication and Earth observation satellites.
• Space for Defence: applying satellite data and communication in military operations.
• Sovereign Aerospace: innovation in drones, autonomous systems and advanced manufacturing technologies.

The winners will receive a cash prize depending on their final ranking. In addition, the winning teams will gain access to a European mentorship programme and the opportunity to pitch their solution to EU Member States during the European finals. This hackathon is therefore a unique springboard into Europe’s defence innovation network.

Who can participate?

The hackathon is open to residents of EU Member States, Norway and Ukraine (18+). You can join as a team of 2–8 people, or register individually and form a team via the TAIKAI platform.

Key dates

• 17 September – Information session
• 18 September – Webinar Challenge 1
• 25 September – Webinar Challenge 2
• 2 October – Webinar Challenge 3
• 8 October – Open stage & Q&A
• 28 October – Start of European mentorship programme

More information and registration can be found on the EUDIS website:

More information and registration