Fellowship of Code - Hack The Future

Fellowship of Code

01/story

fellowship of code

one line to rule them all

One night a young IT student ventured too far… Lost in the darkest corners of the digital realm, he stumbled upon “the code”. Entranced by its power he clicked ‘execute’. And in his ignorance, awakened an ancient evil.

IT enthousiasts from all corners of the world - Unite! We must defend our digital realm from the Witch of Shadows and her Army of Darkness. Together they desire only one thing - To destroy every single website and shroud the entire internet in an everlasting 404. We must act now, the enemy is ready, her full strength gathered. Foul viruses enhanced by twisted sorcery are spreading our way.

Fellowship of Code - This evil must be stopped. The code must be destroyed. Join us and play your part in the greatest battle of the digital age.

one line to rule them all

02/online hackathon

Defend the realm from darkness

From the comfort of your home!

Fellowship of Code - To further destabilize our defences The Witch of Shadows unleashed a biological virus onto our world. Due to these circumstances we are forced to make our final stand from the comfort of our homes. We have worked around the clock to set up a state-of-the-art digital headquarter from which we will organise our defence and follow up on your challenge progress. A secure link will be sent to you after registration. On the 24th of November we will go live and supply you with a briefing of the day. From here we will have exactly 6 hours to “hack” the enemy to pieces and complete our missions. Check out the schedule for more details!

To help turn the tables, we have reached out to 12 of the industry’s most decorated warriors, master hackers with the expertise and experience to guide us to victory… or simply a beacon of hope in our darkest hour.

If you choose to join our epic quest, team up with a mate, select one of our 12 terrifyingly awesome challenges and register your attendance! Places are limited - so hurry…

Want to know more about Hack the Future? Watch this!

03/Challenges

Pick your battle

Select a favoured challenge from the list below. We will do our best to respect your selection. However, due to high demand and limited capacity we ask you for your challenge top 3

You will have 6 hours to hack your way through the challenge. At the end of the day (assuming you made it out in one piece), your team will present its contribution to a panel of seasoned industry warriors. After a tough but fair assessment, they will distinguish the stand-out performances and present those worthy with the keys to the treasure room.

Deep Learning & NLP
Deep Learning & NLP
Raccoons

Deep Learning & NLP

The One Code is being spread by trolls all over the internet! Use your NLP skills to root out these comments on Reddit, but be careful! Though some posts are easily identifiable, some trolls are quite nifty, and you will have to look at reactions from other users. To make matters even worse, these trolls are stealing posts from programming subreddits to confuse your AI, so you will need to filter these out first as well! To summarize: Using well known Python NLP frameworks, we will challenge you to categorise reddit posts, perform analysis on comments and find malicious comments in our vast dataset.

You will learn how to use Natural Language Processing and Machine Learning in a practical context. You will also learn about the 'building blocks' of NLP that are typically used to solve real-world problems involving language data. Though our time is too short for training a ML network from scratch, 95% of real-world challenges are solved by using and fine-tuning pre-built methods from specialised libraries.

Skills and tools

Python knowledge
.NET
.NET
Involved

.NET

Find your path in the Fellowship of code. You will be asked to create an algorithm that can navigate the player through a dungeon. Create the best algorithm so every map can be solved in the most efficient way. With this challenge you’ll learn to apply problem solving techniques, quick thinking and .NET.

Skills and tools

  • Basic knowledge on how to program in .NET
  • Visual Studio or Visual Studio Code or Rider and .NET Core installed
BI
BI
Agiliz

BI

Using weapons like Looker, BigQuery and Python, you’ll be challenged as a warrior to find a way to complete their quest. Frodo, get your Samwise and prepare for a journey unrivalled by anything you have experienced before. But beware, your path to success will be hard. There will be bloodshed. Failure is not an option. Solve the riddle, using the data we provide, visualize it in the tools we offer. And finally, become the most powerful students to ever live. You’ll learn to use the weapons of the Agiliz arsenal. You'll recognize patterns. You’ll learn how to manipulate data for your own benefit. You’ll learn to use that data in hand to hand combat. And eventually, you will rule them all.

Skills and tools

  • Knowledge of SQL, Python, BigQuery, ... can be helpful
  • Browser with a link to Mordor
JavaScript
JavaScript
Zinderlabs

JavaScript

JavaScript versus Darkness: the Dashboard. We want to find clusters of infected websites and code, so we can make the web whole again! Using your coding skills, you will build an interactive dashboard to detect and visualize the viruses and broken code snippets. With this JavaScript magic, the fellowship can decide their next move to ultimately destroy the evil code!

The challenge is built with increasingly difficult topics to ensure everyone can improve their skills. In order to prepare yourself you can already decide which JavaScript based front-end framework you want to use and familiarize yourself with it.

Skills and tools

  • Familiarize yourself with the JavaScript based front-end of your choice.
Mobile
Mobile
Freebility

Mobile

In a team of two you’ll be working on a mobile app that communicates with a backend API to bring “The code” securely to “Mcafee”. The api generates a virtual board at start that shows the area between the current position and “Mcafee”. With every move you make, you get a new state back from the board. You should visualize and update the board in the app based on the current state and environmental information they get back from the API. There are NetGûl present who try to prevent “The code” from being brought to “Mcafee”. The game is won when “The code” is safely brought to “Mcafee”. The game is lost when a NetGûl reaches “The code”. During this challenge you’ll learn to make a mobile app in a short time. Your technical knowledge will be tested and these new skills will be applied.
  • Access backend API from mobile app
  • Visualizing data
  • Mobile interface

Skills and tools

  • Xamarin or javascript/cordova
  • Laptop with dev tools and smartphone
SAP
SAP
Flexso

SAP

The future looks bleak… Our world is close to destruction and only you, my fellow coders, can save us from ultimate doom. Find your Seer and form a Fellowship.

Your task is simple, but the path you must follow is full of hidden pitfalls and unknown dangers. Fear not however. Your Seer will help you navigate this path, across the fields of misery, through Mount McAfee and finally, towards the Palace of Shadows where the evil line of code is kept. You will embark on a journey that promises to be nerve-wracking and difficult, yet glory will be yours if you manage to reach your destination and destroy the one line of code. Save the human race, we need you! Using an IOT server on SCP and other API’s, you’ll be challenged to build an exciting game in JS and UI 5. The goal is to reach the destination inside the “Palace of Shadows” alive.

Skills and tools

  • JavaScript knowledge is recommended
  • Python version 3 & SAP Cloud Platform account
AWS Cloud
AWS Cloud
I8C

AWS Cloud

Real-time troll alerting systems. The code has infiltrated social communication platforms. And time is not on our side...

The Fellowship saw the devastations it has caused. The darkness of the code already clouded the minds of so many innocent souls. Peasants behaving like trolls, raging without a clear vision, and abandoning any form of decency! The code's area of influence is increasing by the minute. Massive new flare-ups are being detected on diverse social media platforms.

ACT 1

We must build a system to pinpoint these hotspots in real-time. And we must do it fast. So the Fellowship is notified of new flare-ups immediately. Enabling them to act fast and minimize the damage of the code. Create this system that tracks the hardest hit platforms, namely Twitter and Reddit. And make sure the Fellowship is alerted on their slack channel.



ACT 2

Bad news ... The code started an offensive against our direct communication platforms. The Fellowship can't protect them all. Predictions show that Slack will fall first. But our other systems, namely WhatsApp, text message, phone calls and MS Teams, aren't safe either. You must extend the alerting system as redundant as possible. Add integrations with as many as possible direct communication methods. Fellowship fighters must be able to configure one and only one preferred channel. You will need to program the different components of an event-driven alerting system. Integrating multiple real-time data sources and different SaaS services. You will get acquainted with cloud technologies like FaaS and messaging services. Get introduced into middleware software required to build resilient, real-time Enterprise integration architectures.

Skills and tools

  • Decent programming skills. Some insights in software architecture is a plus. Experience using AWS services like Lambda or DynamoDb will be handy but isn't a requirement.
  • Terminal, Visual Code Studio, Browser, AWS CLI
Google Cloud
Google Cloud
Localyse

Google Cloud

Every epic tale has a beginning. Most epic tales even have a prequel.

This one chronicles the battle of Antverpia, right before the Fellowship started their epic quest into enduring the effects of the execution of the code. The code still resides in secrecy within the city walls of Antverpia, but as with all big secrets, sooner or later word gets out. Unbeknownst to the city council, legions of Orc warriors were already on their way to claim the code. But, where will they strike and with how many?
The city council needs your help in mapping the city and its defences to delay the siege long enough for the Fellowship to embark on their epic journey to relocate the line of code to its new location, yet to be found. Can you help in holding off the Orcs and make sure the Fellowship slips through the lines unnoticed?

Skills and tools

  • Public cloud (infrastructure and serverless computing), maps (API usage) and Office (presentation and communication) skills
  • Google Cloud toolset
Security
Security
3IT

Security

Imagine a chain of virtual computers. The challenge is to register in the correct order. You cannot log in to the next one until you’re done with the previous one. Passwords, usernames and IP addresses will be hidden in various puzzles. You’ll have to apply general sys admin knowledge and problem solving techniques to solve this challenging quest.

Skills and tools

No specific skillset needed.
Game Web Tech
Game Web Tech
Studio Hyperdrive

Game Web Tech

The Fellowship of the Code has already lived many great adventures. Many times victorious, but from time to time a hero of their mighty party has fallen. Years go by but the stories of these lost fellows live on and grow into the most unbelievable myths.

Those myths are being retold in the form of a simple guessing game. A game that allows young members of the Fellowship to unravel these unbelievable stories by asking simple questions. There is only one catch: to do this, they must ask questions which can only be answered with yes or no.

Lately, spirits have been running low: the Fellowship has not been able to come together in their local inn to play due to a global pandemic, casted upon Middle-earth by Sauron.
Desperately searching for help, the Fellowship is in need of companions capable of providing them with a remote solution. Are you up for the task?

Skills and tools

  • A touch for a great user experience
  • Technical know-how in both frontend and backend development
  • Loads of motivation ...
  • ... and an open mind to solve the mysteries.
ML & Data Science
ML & Data Science
Infofarm

ML & Data Science

The evil code unleashed a devastating blast throughout the known world, creating rifts in the space-time-continuum. Reconnaissance revealed legions from the upside down are armed and ready to breach the rifts, we need you to examine the magnitudes and direct the rifthunters of the united earth forces.

Due to <insert bad guy> cracks (rifts) have formed in the space-time continuum, through these cracks <insert_evil_forces> can escape. Our scouts managed to enter some rifts and were able to partially map the <insert_evil_forces>. It now seems that there is a pattern and we can infer from the rift itself how many monsters to expect. It is now the intention to strategically deploy our (limited amount) of reef gun troops in order to limit the damage (this 'damage' can serve as a competitive metric). Because different troops are better against other monsters, this is an optimization problem.

Skills and tools

  • Python knowledge
  • Anaconda toolkit
Java
Java
C4J & Trace

Java

The realm is infested with an unforgiving and deadly virus released by the forbidden line. It threatens to infect and destroy all of our forces. Our only hope is to contain the virus before it is too late… Do you succeed to isolate every version of the virus to stop the spread of it? During this challenge, you’ll build a skillset on problem solving, out of the box thinking, REST API development, recent java features usage (part of evaluation). Make your code readable and shareable. After all, when you have isolated the malicious code, you'll want to tell the world including the jury how you did it!

Skills and tools

  • Knowledge of core Java, Spring & REST concepts is recommended!
  • IDE, Java JDK, build tool (ant, maven, gradle, ....), rest client (Postman or integrated in your favourite IDE)
AI Application
AI Application
XploData

AI Application

You are challenged to build an application that makes use of natural language processing. The problem that the NLP model should solve can be decided by all of you who choose this challenge. It is expected to deliver a working prototype application at the end of the day, which can be done via a web application. The group has some flexibility depending on the time they have. You’ll have to code in order to train and/or call a NLP model. Some understanding on how to build and/or code an application to put a machine learning model into production is key.

In this project, there are different phases involved that you would encounter during a project with a customer in real life (preparation, execution, production) and you’ll learn how to face those. The idea is also to allow you to get some hands on machine learning, an exciting and booming area in today’s industry and that could be directly applied to a real situation. The challenge is also to get inspired by the potential that machine learning can have if you build a good case with it.

Skills and tools

  • Good knowledge of coding and understanding of how to build an application to apply machine learning.
  • Tools: you can use the tools you’re most familiar with. (E.g. code with Python, call an existing NLP model via an API, and build an interface with Streamlit)
Python
Python
Gumbys

Python

In order to break The Code, we have to engage in a final battle. While preparing for the battle, the Enemy has unleashed a sinister virus that forces our troops to keep distance. Unprepared for this event, this could impact our odds to win. To solve this, we made a new battle arrangement, where Squads will be formed. A special recruitment platform will be set up to reserve your spot in a Squad. Each Squad will be assigned a cannon with tremendous power.
The only problem is that we need a way to order some extra munition without much effort. Therefore, a special device will be given to each squad where they can resupply their gear with the push of a button, without having to leave the station and risk infection.

You will have to create an application in Python/Django that allows reservations and orders. It's the analogy of making a reservation in a restaurant, and a way to order drinks without having to leave the table.

In this challenge there are multiple identifiable milestones:
  • Set up a data model that allows taking reservations and munitions orders, and making a (very simple, minimal) user interface for it.
  • Create a REST API to allow for taking orders for munition per squad.
  • Deploying the application using Serverless technologies (Serverless, Zappa, AWS Lambda, ...)

Skills and tools

  • We will provide the necessary tools, documentation and guidelines.
  • Each team will receive it's own restricted AWS credentials which will be thrown away after the event.

04/Talent navigation

Let us guide you

Discover more

As a student in your final year, you are at a major crossroads in your life. A brand new professional identity lies ahead of you. Our mission is to support all students on this journey and help them kick-start their careers. That's why our Talent Navigation team is available at Hack The Future 2020 to guide you on the right path. Don't hesitate to contact us and find out more!

05/Schedule

Of the day

09:00 - 09:30 Welcome
09:30 - 10:00 Challenge briefing
10:00 - 12:30 Hack 'n Sweat
12:30 - 13:00 Lunch break
13:00 - 16:00 2nd round of hacking
16:00 - 18:00 Pitch your work
18:00 - 18:30 Breakout session
18:30 - 19:30 Award Ceremony
Legend for decoding the schedule
  • Rest
  • Hack
  • Win

06/prizes

How about that loot?

No one can be expected to risk their life and save the digital realm for free. When the battle is over we promise to reward the victorious with fame and riches. We will grant you the keys to the treasure room. Graceful maidens (or courageous hunks) will sing to you as they feed you grapes and grant all your wishes. Children will read stories about you and chant your name so hard it will echo through eternity.

Challenge winner

Challenge winner

Each challenge will award a loot bag to the champions of the victorious duo. The content of this prize package will be a surprise for now but we will reveal some hints in the near future. For now you can trust us when we say that it’s gonna be worth your while!

Crowd favourite

Crowd favourite

Should you fail to win the challenge the standard way - Fear not, you can still take home the (universally desired) ‘Crowd Favourite’ award. Win the heart’s of your peers by displaying positive attitude, original ideas and inspiring execution.

The Grand Tombola

The Grand Tombola

Are you feeling particularly lucky during the hackathon? You simply must enter The Grand Tombola! The chest contents will remain a secret for now but rest assured that it’s gonna be worth your while! (hint: bring a wheelbarrow...)

07/practical

practicals and FAQ

we got you covered

We expect blind allegance of no one. If you require additional information or have (event related) queries that we could help you with - feel free to contact us via the form below. The fastest pigeons in the king’s service are well fed and eager to provide you with the answers you seek!

For the more frequently asked questions we have provided our answers right here.

Yes, you can still register to join the Fellowship of Code online hackathon. Registrations open mid october and will close approximately 2 weeks before the event. All updates about the registrations can be followed via our facebook page and instagram account.

With this first online edition of Hack The Future, there is no physical location this year. But hey, there's no place like home. I mean, where else can you walk around without pants and not break any rules?

Some schools provide a place on campus to hack together. Please speak to the person responsible within your school for this.

We will provide a kickass online platform that will be used throughout the whole day. All details about this online platform will be provided once you subscribe to the hackathon.

At 9 am sharp the Fellowship of Code will kick off. Make sure you sit tight! Make sure to brew a nice cup of coffee. And who knows, maybe we’ll surprise you with something to accompany that coffee.

The winners of the hackathon are announced at 18:30 and the end of the hackathon is foreseen around 19:30.

A comfy sofa, your laptop, lightning fast wi-fi and a fully stacked fridge are a start. Check your challenge for other requirements like specific software and tools.

Cronos has a profound respect for your privacy & will never distribute nor sell your personal information. Still, Cronos retains the right to use your data for its own non-hack-the-future-related purposes. But when your name comes up somewhere, chances are statistically significant that you will be happy afterwards.

After your registration, you will receive a confirmation email. Sit tight and we will let you know as soon as possible for which challenge you have been selected.

In order to make sure that there are approximately the same number of participants in each challenge, we ask you to pass on a top 3. We do our utmost to give everyone their first or second choice.

As for many, 2020 is also a challenging year for Hack The Future. In order to make the hackathon feasible this year, we have had to take a number of decisions. This year we will organise our hackathon online and it will be a 1-day event instead of two days. During that one day we will only focus on IT students.

But don't worry, after 2020 there will be 2021. Next year we plan (if circumstances permit) to organise the hackathon back in full glory for both hackers and creatives. We are looking forward to it!

Ask Siri, Alexa, send an email to julie@hackthefuture.be of fill in the contact form on our website. We'll be happy to help you hack your problem.

08/contact

more questions?