NJx Hackathon · Skillman, New Jersey
24 hours to build what New Jersey needs next.
NJx Hackathon is an in-person, noon-to-noon build sprint for high school, undergraduate, and graduate students. Teams get a mystery theme at kickoff, mentors from the state’s startup and investor community, and one day to turn an idea into a working product and a pitch.
Incubating and supporting the New Jersey Innovation Ecosystem
Hackathons held in 2026
Student teams at the April event
Registered participants in June
In cash prizes across both events
Past events
Two weekends. One growing community of builders.
NJx Hackathon launched in April 2026 and returned in June with a cybersecurity and AI-safety edition. Both events were held at Venture X Skillman inside the Montgomery Innovation Hub.
April 11–12, 2026
The inaugural event brought 19 student teams together to tackle AI-powered voice scams, automated content on social media, and challenges unique to New Jersey.
- 19 teams · 20+ volunteer mentors
- $1,500 in NJx Innovation Prizes
June 20–21, 2026
Teams shipped real cybersecurity and AI-safety products across four mission tracks, built for a specific customer they could actually reach.
- 131 registered participants
- Winners: ModGuard, Snapkey, KinCode
The format
How the weekend runs
Every NJx Hackathon follows the same noon-to-noon rhythm, so first-time hackers and repeat competitors know exactly what to expect.
01
Friday evening
Pre-hackathon game night
An evening of board games, pizza, and introductions with founders, students, and technologists, presented by 1435 Capital.
02
Saturday 9:00 AM
Check-in and kickoff
Registration, orientation, and panels. At noon, the mystery theme is revealed and the 24-hour clock starts.
03
Saturday → Sunday
Build with mentors
Teams code, design, and test with volunteer mentors on hand for product, startup strategy, and AI ethics questions.
04
Sunday noon
Pitch, judging, awards
Submissions close at noon. Teams pitch, judges deliberate, and winners are announced at the awards ceremony.
From weekend build to the summit stage
June’s first-place team pitched investors three weeks later.
ModGuard, built by students from Bergen County Technical High School in Paramus, won first place at the NJx AI Summer Hackathon with a desktop app that deep-scans game mods and URLs for malware before a player launches the game.
The win earned the team a spot on stage at the July 8, 2026 NJx Venture Summit, where they presented their company to investors and business leaders. That path, from a 24-hour build to a room full of investors, is what NJx Hackathon is designed to create.
Eligibility
Built for students, from first hack to tenth.
NJx Hackathon is open to high school, undergraduate, and graduate students ages 14 to 28 in the United States. Teams form at the event or arrive together, and beginners are welcome. Agentic coding tools are provided on site.
Every submission includes
- A GitHub repository with all code and work completed during the event
- A short written description of the idea, the problem, and how it was built
- A working demo or presentation of the project
- A final pitch, delivered in person at the end of the event
Projects must be started and built during the 24-hour window. Pre-built projects are disqualified.
Partners
Made possible by New Jersey’s innovation community.
Sponsors, venue partners, and community organizations that supported the 2026 NJx Hackathon events.
Sponsor
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Challenge partner
Montgomery Innovation Hub
Venue partner
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Fiscal sponsor
A nonprofit program, built in public for New Jersey students.
NJx Hackathon is fiscally sponsored by NJx Venture Summit NJ NFP Corp, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Contributions that support the program are made to the fiscal sponsor and are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.
What’s next
Mentor, judge, sponsor, or compete.
The next NJx Hackathon will be announced here. Tell us how you would like to take part and we will reach out when dates are set.