Hackson "Attack" Guide: How do developers stand out in competitions?

Author: Yilmaz , Citrea DevRel (Developer Relations)

Compiled by: Felix, PANews

In recent years, Web3 Hackers has gradually emerged worldwide and has become a major event for developers in the industry. A group of developers from all over the world brainstormed during the event, formed close-knit groups to create applications with normal functions in order to win big prizes. But there are always a few successful people. Apart from the technology itself, how to take the lead in the competition may be the question of every developer. ETHGlobal Taipei 2025 Hackathon judge Yilmaz recently posted a message to make his own suggestions on how contestants can stand out in Hackathon. The following is the full text of the content.

You cross half of the earth to attend a hackathon. Your code is clean and concise, and it makes people want to lick the screen. However, you returned empty-handed and didn't get any prizes. What's going on? Tip: This is not a technical problem.

This is not uncommon. Excellent developers, great builders gain nothing. This is not because they are not good at technology, but because they ignore some key links of Hackathon.

Recently, I served as a judge at ETH Global Taipei Station on behalf of Citrea. Citrea sponsored the event and hosted selections such as “Best Bapps on Citrea” and “Experimental DeFi Bapps.” For most of the event, I was not only responsible for the judges, but also observed - shuttle between booths and tables, listen to the developers' ideas, and brainstorm them together. Seeing these scenes reminds me of the days I participated in the competition, and then I learned how to break down the rules of the game so that I could potentially win rewards.

This article will share some insights on how to truly “conquer” Hackerson – from the experience of someone who has been a architect and now as a DevRel, who has reviewed Web3 Hackerson many times.

Hackerstone started before the start of the game

It is one of the biggest mistakes to think that the hackathon only starts on the first day. Actually, this is not the case. I'm not saying to pre-build your project (that would be disqualified immediately), but there are a lot of things you can prepare in advance.

observe

You may be a student or an experienced developer who wants to get involved in the Web3 ecosystem. But do you know which field you want to get involved in? You should observe this industry as soon as possible. Not just chatting on Twitter, but really diving into the field and seeing what everyone is doing. What are the weaknesses or gaps that you can fill or improve on, what are the improvements that are coming, and what projects are strong in which tracks.

It can be very helpful to have a holistic understanding of the areas you are about to get involved. That's because seeing a lot of developers trying to get rewards from areas they know almost nothing about. This won't work in most cases because you simply don't know what you're building. Judges, hackers and consultants may help during the Hackathon, but it is far from enough.

Build connections and teamwork

If you step into the arena without a team, you are already behind. Before the Hackathon begins, you have a few days or even weeks to build a team—which gives you time to screen members, test team members’ compatibility, improve team collaboration, or adjust team members’ roles.

However, participating in a single competition is not hopeless. Maybe you are interested in forming a team on site, brainstorming with people of different backgrounds, and inspiring unique creativity. If you don’t have a team yet, be proactive: attend some peripheral events, cocktail parties and keynote speeches before the Hackathon begins. Communicate with developers, designers, product managers, developer relationships, and even business development personnel. They may not know how to program, but they know many people and can help you find the perfect teammates.

I personally helped form two teams before Taipei Ethereum Hacking Song. They didn't know each other before, but one of the teams eventually won the award.

Check the track as early as possible

Check out the track and funded projects as early as possible before the first day of the Hacker Release Race. Surprisingly, many contestants didn’t pay attention to this until the event started. Tracks are usually announced days or weeks in advance to give contestants time to develop strategies.

For example, the ETH Global hacker announced the track two weeks before the race was released. Some developers will contact the project in advance to explain their ideas and ensure that they are consistent with the track. This proactive approach allows them to adjust their ideas or choose the right track, thus maximizing their chances of winning.

Break the rules

Creativity is crucial. Even if you have the simplest code base, you can still fail. Why? Because your creativity is not outstanding enough. It hasn't reached the product market fit, or the jury has seen too many similar products. If you submit another AI wallet interface and there is little improvement over the work submitted by six teams in the past two months, you have no hope. Since the judges are not interested in your creativity/concept in the first phase, it is difficult to attract the judges to pay attention to your code.

The judges have limited time to select each submission and cannot study every line of code in depth. Therefore, product concepts or creativity are crucial. Is this concept reasonable? Is it unique or is it a real improvement to existing products on the market? Does it feel novel?

Give a real case. There is a team from the Philippines on the Taipei Ethereum Hacking Matsu. They have a Web2 background and have no Web3 experience at all, but their creativity is completely out of the norm and the novelty immediately attracts the attention of the judges. They haven’t even submitted to our track, but are now working with them in our incubation project, Citrea Origins. This is the power of a great creativity that can get attention immediately.

Think from the perspective of the jury. After two days, the jury looked at more than 20 projects and was exhausted. You only have a few minutes to win the judges’ favor.

The list of thoughts in your mind is as follows:

• What product is this?

• Is this concept novel?

• Does it have a potential product market fit?

• Is this just a copy of other products?

• Is this coded during this hackathon, or is it pre-built/repeated?

The judges have seen everything. If your project is just empty, it will be recognized soon.

Talip (Citrea DevRel) can recognize pre-built projects at a glance

Interact with the jury

Want to increase your chances of winning? You might as well talk to the jury, they can provide far more help than you think. Before you start building, explain your creativity and discuss it with the judges.

This not only improves your ideas, but also increases attention. If the judges have seen your face, heard your plan, and then saw your project again in the submitted work—you will remember you. Then you naturally have an advantage.

striking

Make sure your work is eye-catching. Once you have a great creative and solid team, start building – but don’t stop there. You may have the idea of ​​being able to stand out, but to ensure you win the award, you have to show it well. Many times, contestants ignore the demo and just post a GitBook, which may work. It doesn't mean you have to make colorful demonstrations, but there should be a clear and detailed demonstration.

• Give it a good name - yes, a name is important. It sets the tone.

• Design architecture - Draw charts and simplify descriptions.

• Create clickable demos – more powerful than videos, allowing judges to experience them personally.

• Build a clean and clear PPT – your slideshow should be able to explain everything without you having to explain too much.

Don't put too much effort into video presentations unless absolutely necessary. If it is only a five-minute user interface display, the judges are not interested. Provide some interactive content. Let the judges experience this application and experience it.

One of my architecture professors once said, “If I need to ask a question, it means your presentation failed.” This may sound a bit extreme, but please use it as a guideline for the presentation. Because from a broader perspective, your presentation is essentially your Pitch Platform.

Wait, everything is to attract attention? Always

More than just bonuses

Finally, remember: Prizes are good, but they are not real prizes.

Hackathon is an attention economy. Everyone is paying attention. Even if you don’t win, you can impress the right people and the door to opportunity will be open to you: incubation opportunities, partnerships, job opportunities. Bonus are short-term; your reputation is long-term.

Also, please don’t attend five unknown hackathons just to make up the numbers, no one will care. Create something that will allow you to grow and add value to your portfolio.

In short, how to participate in Hackathon:

• Team up as soon as possible

• Conceive novel ideas

• Think from the perspective of the jury and interact more

• Make a clickable, beautiful presentation

• Sell ​​it like your future depends on it (because it does)

Related Readings: Electric Capital Annual Developer Report: 39,000 new developers have joined, and more than half of Ethereum developers are committed to L2