AI Discovery Hackathon 2026 – A Journey of Innovation and Breakthrough with Artificial Intelligence

To provide a beneficial academic forum that helps students approach, explore, and apply artificial intelligence (AI) to real-world scenarios, the Faculty of Information Technology at Lac Hong University organized the AI Discovery Hackathon 2026. The competition's theme focused on leveraging the power of AI to solve problems in academia, daily life, and society.

Spanning over a month of implementation, the competition attracted significant interest from numerous students both within and outside the faculty. Far more than just a tech competition, the AI Discovery Hackathon 2026 offered students an avenue to foster their creativity, problem-solving mindsets, teamwork dynamics, and practical technology application skills.

Throughout the event, the Organizing Committee hosted a series of three training and orientation workshops. These sessions equipped contestants with foundational knowledge regarding AI, Prompt Engineering, product deployment, idea conceptualization, and project presentation skills. This comprehensive preparation served as crucial groundwork, enabling teams to refine their concepts step-by-step for the decisive round.

Following the preliminary qualifiers, 11 exceptional teams comprising 23 students earned their spots in the Final Round of the AI Discovery Hackathon 2026, which took place on Friday, May 29, 2026, at Hall B203, Lac Hong University.

The morning session commenced with the presence of the panel of judges, faculty members, guest speakers, and all competing teams. During the opening ceremony, contestants received insightful remarks and encouraging words from university leaders and judges regarding the role of artificial intelligence in the digital era, as well as the importance of an innovative spirit among students.

Directly after the opening ceremony, the official prompt for the Final Round was unveiled. From that moment, the teams entered a continuous 5-hour Hackathon challenge, pushing members to collaborate intensively on research, ideation, solution development, product design, and presentation finalization within the strict time constraint.

The atmosphere in the hall grew vibrant and highly energetic as teams constantly exchanged ideas, coded, tested, and polished their products. Each team brought unique perspectives and diverse approaches to harness the power of AI, aiming to address practical issues in learning, task management, and lifestyle support.

Once the hacking window closed, the teams proceeded to pitch and demonstrate their products before the panel of judges. This stood as the most critical segment of the program, where teams introduced their core concepts, showcased live product models, highlighted key features, and demonstrated the value proposition of their projects.

In addition to their presentations, the teams participated in a live Q&A session with the judges. Expert inquiries helped clarify the feasibility, scalability, and real-world application potential of each product. Through this defense process, several creative ideas received high praise for their novelty, utility, and capability to resolve practical dilemmas.

While the judges deliberated and consolidated the final scores following the presentations, the hall transitioned into a lively networking and mini-game session, creating a joyful and bonding environment for both the competing teams and the audience.

Based on evaluation criteria including core concept, creativity, AI integration, product feasibility, presentation delivery, and performance during the Q&A defense, the judges selected the most outstanding teams to receive awards.

The final results of the AI Discovery Hackathon 2026 are as follows:

🥇 First Prize: 3T Team

🥈 Second Prize: ADLEY Team

🥉 Third Prize: AI SMARTTHING Team

🏅 Consolation Prize: ADLEY KID Team

🏅 Consolation Prize: Type Error Team

Alongside the primary awards, the Organizing Committee presented Certificates of Participation to all competing teams, recognizing their dedication to learning, creativity, and relentless efforts throughout the competition journey.

The AI Discovery Hackathon 2026 has officially concluded, leaving behind many memorable milestones. The competition was not only a stage for students to showcase their technical expertise and skills, but also an environment that facilitated peer learning, networking, and the development of innovative thinking in an era of rapid artificial intelligence advancement.

The success of the program stands as a testament to the dedication toward learning, research, and technological application among Lạc Hồng University students. Concurrently, it serves as a powerful driver for the Organizing Committee to sustain and scale this platform in the coming years, fostering a shared passion for technology and driving innovation across the student community.

The Organizing Committee extends its sincere gratitude to the faculty members, the panel of judges, supporting units, and all competing teams who accompanied us and contributed to the success of the AI Discovery Hackathon 2026.