IEEE O.C A.I “DEVHACK” Hackathon 2025 Winner Celebration

The IEEE DevHack2025 centered around the theme “Building the Future: AI-Powered Tools for Real-World Impact.” The hackathon emphasized how artificial intelligence can be harnessed to solve real-world challenges while advancing IEEE’s mission of technology for humanity.

Details

The event successfully brought together more than 1,600 participants from across the United States in a high-energy, 72-hour virtual hackathon. Participants collaborated across disciplines to generate innovative solutions, resulting in more than 400 project submissions.

In addition to coding and collaboration, three high-impact learning sessions were delivered during the hackathon. These sessions equipped participants with practical insights and hands-on knowledge to help them learn quickly, adapt, and build stronger solutions within the limited timeframe:

• Build a Next.js AI Chatbot — delivered by Christoph Heike, offering participants technical guidance on building responsive AI-powered applications.
• Groq for LLM Application — delivered by Madhumitha, showcasing how Groq technology can be leveraged to optimize large language model–based applications.
• Designing Practical AI Agents — delivered by Pradyumna Amasebail Kodgi, focusing on applying design patterns for real-world adoption of AI-driven agents.

Submissions were evaluated based on originality, impact, and adherence to hackathon guidelines, with all eligible participants receiving recognition certificates.

Winners

After an intense 72 hours of marathon judging, the evaluation panel faced a unique challenge: the top projects were so closely matched in innovation, execution, and impact that it was impossible to distinguish a single clear winner. In recognition of their outstanding achievements, the judges made the exceptional decision to award three First Prizes.

The winning projects were:

• AL Productivity Overlay
• Minute Mind
• Arrhythmia Detection Solution

This rare outcome underscored the exceptional quality of the submissions and highlighted the depth of talent that IEEE DevHack2025 attracted. The winners were officially announced during AEMS 2025 in Anaheim, marking a memorable highlight of the conference.

Organizing Committee

The success of DevHack2025 was made possible by the creativity of participants and the dedication of its organizing team:

• Pradyumna Amasebail Kodgi — Program Manager and Judge Product Manager for Oracle AI-Infused Integration Platform. Led end to end program management for DevHack2025, from participant communications to Devpost coordination, while also judging projects for creativity, technical execution, and compliance with event guidelines.
• Christoph Heike — Technical Coordinator and Judge a founder, engineer, and AI entrepreneur with over a decade of experience building innovative software products and leading technical teams. He is the founder of Pacific Codeline and Greetmate.ai, and as part of the executive committee for IEEE AI DevHack 2025, he helped define the event’s theme, manage logistics.
• Swapnali Karvekar — Outreach Coordinator and Judge for the IEEE AI Dev Hackathon 2025, where she secured funding by engaging IEEE entities, created publicity materials (flyers, LinkedIn page), and drove student participation — all to expand access to real-world AI innovation.
• Madhumitha Karthikeyan — Event Coordinator and Judge- AI Researcher and Senior IEEE Member. As a Program Coordinator for DevHack2025, she engaged industry experts to curate workshops, streamlined workshop Q&A and participant communication via Slack, and as a Judge, evaluated projects on innovation, impact, and technical complexity.
• Gora Datta

Their efforts, along with leadership and guidance from Gora Datta Chair IEEE OC Computer Society Chapter, ensured the event’s success and lasting impact.

Acknowledgment

The Organizing Committee would like to express its sincere gratitude to the IEEE Orange County Computer Society Chapter, the IEEE Engineering in Medicine & Biology Society (Orange County Chapter), and the IEEE Orange County Section for their generous support and active involvement in making the Hackathon a success. The Committee also acknowledges the valuable guidance and encouragement provided by the IEEE Southern California Council – TripleM Initiative and the IEEE Region 6 Professional Activities Committee for Engineers (PACE), whose continued efforts have been instrumental in promoting innovation, collaboration, and professional development across the region.

Participant Engagement & Outreach

To ensure smooth registration and maximize participant engagement, we used Devpost as the official registration platform. We also developed a dedicated hackathon website to share event details, schedules, and updates, making it easier for participants to access all information in one place. To foster interaction and collaboration, we created a community Slack workspace where participants could ask questions, share ideas, and connect with fellow hackers and organizers in real time.