Michigan DevFest + AI Hackathon 2026

The Detroit, Ann Arbor, Toledo, UofM Dearborn and Windsor GDGs are teaming up with Compass Detroit to bring you the 12th Michigan DevFest on November 13-14, 2026.

Join us on Friday, November 13th for an AI Hackathon followed by Michigan DevFest sessions on Saturday, November 14th at Little Caesars HQ. With this year's DevFest, we aim to put together a great weekend of networking, innovation, and knowledge sharing for all involved.

This years sponsors include Google, IBM, DTE Energy, Little Caesars, and Compass Detroit.

If you are interested in becoming a sponsor for Michigan DevFest, email us at sponsors@midevfest.com

You can view the Michigan DevFest + AI Hackathon 2025 Schedule (below) on midevfest.com.
Workshops:

Introduction to Gemini 2.5 Pro on Google Cloud: Google Developer Experts

Building AI Agents with Vertex AI Agent Builder: JC Escalante, Ipsos, Google Developer Expert

Multimodal Use Cases: Adonai Vera, Voxel51, Google Developer Expert

Build With AI:

The Agentic Shift: From Prompt to Action: Nilesh Patel, Google

Gemini Nano on Android: Building with On-Device GenAI: Madona S. Wambua, Capital One, Google Developer Expert

From Data Gaps to Data Gold: Adonai Vera, Voxel51, Google Developer Expert

Practical AI: Within SRE, Delivery and Cloud Engineering: Joel Vasallo, TAG - The Aspen Group, Google Developer Expert

The Universal Adapter: Building and Scaling MCP Servers: Stephen Wylie, OpenBrite, LLC, Google Developer Expert

Building the Chain of Trust: A Google ADK Blueprint for Grounded Legal AI Agents: Boris-Wilfried Nyasse, Google Developer Expert

Tech+Design:

Beyond the Black Box - Designing for Trust and Transparency with Google Cloud: JC Escalante, Ipsos, Google Developer Expert

Blood, Sweat & Code Reviews: David Giard, Microsoft

Building Your First AI Tool Server with Firebase Auth & Cloud Functions: Alex Patterson, CodingCatDev, Google Developer Expert

Know Your JS: SBOMs for Frontend Devs: Chris DeMars, TuxCare

Iterating on Applications from a Browser with Firebase Studio: Jay Whitsitt, Commerce Bank

Car Hacking for Android Enthusiasts: Shams Ahson, Google Developers

Innovation:

Designing for the Mind: Bridging Human Experience and Emerging Technologies: Hoda Solati and Shima Solati, BraunAbility

Visualizing Neural Network Training with PyTorch: Ankita Guha, Freudenberg e-Power System

Build Securely: How Developers Can Protect the AI Ecosystem: Kavitha Bangalore, Cleveland Clinic

Blending Product Thinking with Software Modernization: Brian McKeiver, BizStream, Microsoft MVP

Robotics in the Age of Generative AI: Hafeez Jimoh, Lawrence Technological University

Getting Started with Microcontrollers and Sensors: W. Scott Richardson, Altair Engineering

Level Up:

Mission Resilience™: Thriving Through Change in Tech: Lorrena Black, She Served LLC

Strategies & Tips for Growing Your Career: Dave Koziol, Little Caesars

Leading Through Change: Hispanic & Black Engineers Shaping the Future of STEAM: Panelists -

Martez Coleman

Trivia Barnes, ZF Group

Angel Porras, Ford Motor Company

Erik Blancas, United Wholesale Mortgage

Raquel Estradas, Comerica Bank

Moderator - Maridy Mazaira, Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers

Component Catalyst: Building a Dynamic React Portfolio. Build a Professional Project Showcase!: Shugmi Shumunov, Shumunov Solutions

From Meetups to Mastery: Balancing Growth and Community: Umelo Onyejiaka, DevOps Detroit

AI Hackathon Winners: Presentations, Demos and Award Ceremony

Leadership:

FORGET YOUR GRAND DAD: ADOPT THE NEXT-GEN EXECUTIVE PLAYBOOK: Ida Byrd-Hill, Automation Workz

Solving a Problem to Create Innovative Change: Turning Pain into Purpose, Profit, Impact, and Power: Kamille Tynes, Connected with Care

Microsoft Azure AI Foundry & Agent Framework: Pooya Alavian, Microsoft

Beneath the Armor: The Cost of Emotional Suppression in Tech Leadership: Bernadette Atanga, MD, AltangaMD Consulting LLC

The Ethics of Voice & Storytelling: Who Gets Heard in the Age of AI: Michael Bower

Women Shaping the Future Panel: Panelists

Cynthia Respert, BuildHer Academy and Rebrand City

Stephaine Frantz, Cengage Education

Jeseekia Vaughn, Detroit Black Tech and TechTown Detroit

Alexis Seiler, Stratascale

Moderator - Bandhan Kaur, Google Women Tech Makers Ambassador & EA

Additional information is available on our dedicated website.

Michigan DevFest attendees agree to follow the Code of Conduct.

This is a hybrid event. Join the event virtually at https://gdg.community.dev/events/details/google-gdg-detroit-presents-michigan-devfest-ai-hackathon-2026/
or in person at

Little Caesars Corporate Office - 2125 Woodward Avenue, Detroit, MI 48201

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Agenda

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Hosted By

Dave Koziol, GDG Organizer

Dave is a Director, Software Engineering at Little Caesars.Dave believes strongly in trying to foster and grow the tech community in Michigan and is a meetup organizer for GDG Ann Arbor, GDG Detroit, and the Korean / English Language Exchange.

Jenna Ritten, Chief Developer Advocate & Architect

Jenna Ritten (@jritten) is the Chief Developer Advocate & Architect for InnerSource@IBM at IBM Research. She is committed to expanding the reach of AI, open source and cloud-native technologies to global communities. Her areas of expertise include platform, community, hackathons, design-thinking workshops, AI/ML, blockchain, cloud-native, and innersource and open source. Jenna is an advocate for non-traditional people in tech, much like herself, and provides support by building and fostering communities for underrepresented people in tech.

Complete your event RSVP here: https://gdg.community.dev/events/details/google-gdg-detroit-presents-michigan-devfest-ai-hackathon-2026/.