IME with hackathons, they are kind of like a hibachi grill. The first and second hackathon was really exciting, then it wore down as I realized most of the prod

IME with hackathons, they are kind of like a hibachi grill. The first and second hackathon was really exciting, then it wore down as I realized most of the products were fancy ML / crypto presentations without much substance, the "competition" was broken (because those ML / crypto projects always won even vs some genuinely original and creative ideas), and you can't really build something interesting in a couple days (unless maybe you have a one-in-a-million eureka moment). There are exceptions: if you have a particularly great idea, or if the hackathon has a particularly great social experience. But 24-48 hours is simultaneously too much and not enough time, and trying to build a commercially-viable product in 24/48 hours of crunch while also spending 24/48 hours partying is often not actually that fun or productive. The "Internal Corporate Hackathons" the author hates though...these are something else. These are not hackathons: > ...the Management has already decided what you'll build. They give you a pre-selected pool of ideas to give you an illusion of choice. Then, they expect you to have their experimental projects fully built in just one day. Also, participation is "encouraged"... > “My company just sent out an email about Hackathon where you spend two weeks crunching to solve complex problems for the company. Followed by a two week Hackathon where we're supposed to test/bugfix the software built during the Hackathon.....”