Shortlisted teams have been announced via email. Good Luck!
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About the Hackathon
The American University in Cairo, School of Business, Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (CEI), together with Etisalat Misr and EBank - as the platinum sponsors, alongside Fintech Egypt - as the Knowledge partner - are launching the fourth edition of the annual virtual business plan competition HACK23 for national, regional and international undergraduate university students of all majors. The competition aims to empower students with the needed knowledge, skills and networks to create innovative technological solutions that inspire a more sustainable, accessible and resilient future for their communities.
► HACK23 aims to build the sense of social awareness among the participating students in order to enhance their understanding towards the needs of their societies and communities. HACK23 is looking for emerging trends and innovative ideas to bring them to light.
► HACK23 will mobilize international undergraduate students to find and implement crowd-sourced, and people-centered solutions through an online hackathon built around the design thinking methodology that supports innovation through design sprints, rapid solution development through brainstorming, community engagement through crowdsourcing, and accessibility to coaching and mentorship.
► HACK23 is coming up with the most thought-provoking and disruptive tracks for you to fully test your potential, gain hands-on entrepreneurial experience and compete against teams from around the globe!
► HACK23 aims at yielding innovative ideas from Youth, developing youth critical thinking, creative thinking, communication skills and spurring youth’s Entrepreneurship mindset through meeting and interacting with experienced coaches and trainers throughout the hackathon’s duration.
► HACK23 is eager to have innovative ideas across sectors and tackles climate change and sustainability in areas that help create simpler, more productive, enjoyable and safer life for our world.
Carbon emissions reduction is a crisis that has been causing a negative impact on the world in many areas, such as: increased temperatures, melting glaciers, as well as health impacts. Unfortunately, the impact of climate change will continue to exist, if not increase, provided that we do not create solutions for the problem. Since the crisis influences a multitude of different areas of life, this provides us with a variety of areas to tackle, which is why it is important to segment the issue into smaller areas in order to implement different solutions. This also makes it easier for students to develop ideas targeting specific segments. Our aim from this track is to produce solutions that would increase regularly sustainable behavior in order to help minimize the impact of climate change. The solutions could fall under a variety of categories, which include but are not limited to:
Objective and Rationale
Through HACK23, we are looking for students who are passionate about finding and building innovative solutions to help them tackle any barriers they are facing.
► HACK23 aims to build the sense of social awareness among the participating students in order to enhance their understanding towards the needs of their societies and communities. HACK23 is looking for emerging trends and innovative ideas to bring them to light.
► HACK23 will mobilize international undergraduate students to find and implement crowd-sourced, and people-centered solutions through an online hackathon built around the design thinking methodology that supports innovation through design sprints, rapid solution development through brainstorming, community engagement through crowdsourcing, and accessibility to coaching and mentorship.
► HACK23 is coming up with the most thought-provoking and disruptive tracks for you to fully test your potential, gain hands-on entrepreneurial experience and compete against teams from around the globe!
► HACK23 aims at yielding innovative ideas from Youth, developing youth critical thinking, creative thinking, communication skills and spurring youth’s Entrepreneurship mindset through meeting and interacting with experienced coaches and trainers throughout the hackathon’s duration.
► HACK23 is eager to have innovative ideas across sectors and tackles climate change and sustainability in areas that help create simpler, more productive, enjoyable and safer life for our world.
- Gather your team of 2 to 5 undergraduates
- Research, Approach then Generate a Solution
- Build The Model and Business Plan
- Present to Judges
- Win Prizes
Program highlights
Track one: Sustainability and Carbon Emissions Reduction
Carbon emissions reduction is a crisis that has been causing a negative impact on the world in many areas, such as: increased temperatures, melting glaciers, as well as health impacts. Unfortunately, the impact of climate change will continue to exist, if not increase, provided that we do not create solutions for the problem. Since the crisis influences a multitude of different areas of life, this provides us with a variety of areas to tackle, which is why it is important to segment the issue into smaller areas in order to implement different solutions. This also makes it easier for students to develop ideas targeting specific segments. Our aim from this track is to produce solutions that would increase regularly sustainable behavior in order to help minimize the impact of climate change. The solutions could fall under a variety of categories, which include but are not limited to:
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1) Plastic waste, reduction and recycling i.e. banners, sim cards….
2) Net-zero carbon emissions practices
3) Climate changes and actions
4) Overexploitation of natural resources
5) Energy efficiency
Net Zero Carbon Emissions
Energy Efficiency
Over exploitation of natural resources
Climate change and actions
Plastic waste, reduction, and recycling
Track Two: FinTech
FinTech is a growing field that holds the potential to revolutionize certain areas of our lives.
Egypt’s national vision for 2030 recognizes the importance of FinTech to drive the future of
Egypt’s financial sector. The Central Bank of Egypt acknowledges that embracing innovation is
critical to transforming Egypt’s banking and financial landscape, and promoting financial
inclusion by tapping on youth and students all around the globe.
The students will be encouraged to use FinTech in innovative ways to create their own FinTech-related solutions. They may also choose to develop ways to make FinTech safer and more
convenient, as well as more accessible by regular people, small to medium enterprises (SMEs), or
any demographic they choose. It is important to discuss the inclusivity of FinTech in order for the
society to reap the maximum benefits overall.
Hack 23 will apply the following topics in regards to FinTech track;
1) Digital Financial Inclusion solution: refers to the availability and accessibility of financial services to all individuals and businesses. The problem is that a significant portion of the global population, particularly in developing countries, still lacks access to basic financial services such as savings accounts, credit, insurance, and payment systems. This exclusion limits their ability to participate in economic activities, save for emergencies or future investments, and improve their overall well-being. Therefore, there is a need to address the barriers that prevent individuals and businesses from accessing financial services and promote policies that foster financial inclusion.
2) Increase Egypt Exports solution: faces challenges related to the lack of access to international markets due to trade barriers and protectionist policies adopted by some countries. Another issue is the inadequate infrastructure and logistics facilities that make it difficult for exporters to transport their goods efficiently and cost-effectively. Additionally, limited financial resources and lack of knowledge about export procedures and regulations can also pose significant challenges for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). These problems need to be addressed through effective policies, strategies, and support mechanisms.
3) Agri-FinTech
4) Crowdfunding
5) Peer to Peer Lending
6) IPN Infrastructure
7) Other
1) Digital Financial Inclusion solution: refers to the availability and accessibility of financial services to all individuals and businesses. The problem is that a significant portion of the global population, particularly in developing countries, still lacks access to basic financial services such as savings accounts, credit, insurance, and payment systems. This exclusion limits their ability to participate in economic activities, save for emergencies or future investments, and improve their overall well-being. Therefore, there is a need to address the barriers that prevent individuals and businesses from accessing financial services and promote policies that foster financial inclusion.
2) Increase Egypt Exports solution: faces challenges related to the lack of access to international markets due to trade barriers and protectionist policies adopted by some countries. Another issue is the inadequate infrastructure and logistics facilities that make it difficult for exporters to transport their goods efficiently and cost-effectively. Additionally, limited financial resources and lack of knowledge about export procedures and regulations can also pose significant challenges for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). These problems need to be addressed through effective policies, strategies, and support mechanisms.
3) Agri-FinTech
4) Crowdfunding
5) Peer to Peer Lending
6) IPN Infrastructure
7) Other
Crowdfunding
Digital Financial Inclusion Solution
IPN Infrastructure
Agri-Fintech
Peer-to-Peer Lending
Increase Egypt Exports Solution
Strategic Partners
Knowledge Partner
EcoSystem Partners
