⚡ AI Builders Hackathon — Ship a Real MVP

The Prompt Engineers Spring 2026 AI Hackathon is a 5-week, mentor-led build program designed to help participants go from idea to a working AI project.

This is not a weekend sprint or a typical hackathon.

It’s a guided, collaborative experience focused on learning by building, with structured sessions, mentor support, and a clear progression toward shipping an MVP that actually works.

Whether you’re an engineer, product thinker, designer, or someone exploring AI for the first time, this program is designed to help you gain real-world experience building AI applications and walk away with a project you can be proud of.

‼️ IMPORTANT: To participate in this hackathon, you must register using this form.‼️

🔍 What This Hackathon Is
• A team-based AI build program
• Guided by mentors and industry practitioners
• Focused on practical AI development and workflows
• Structured to support both beginners and experienced builders
• Designed to produce real, demo-ready projects

This program emphasizes:
• Learning by doing
• Clear scope and execution
• Practical AI workflows
• Shipping something real

📅 Location: Improving
5445 Legacy Dr #100
Plano, TX

Kickoff Weekend: Saturday–Sunday, March 21–22
(In Person, 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM both days)
Kickoff Weekend is where everything begins, and we're excited to be able to offer this in person at Improving.

Saturday focuses on foundations—AI product strategy, architecture patterns, agentic systems, and practical frameworks from experienced practitioners.

Sunday moves into execution—teams form, ideas take shape, and groups leave with a project direction and build plan.

🛠️ Build Weeks: Saturdays, March 28 – April 18
(Remote 10 AM - 2 PM)
Teams will continue building over several weeks, with optional mentor-led sessions and office hours designed to help teams progress and unblock challenges.

Each build week focuses on a different layer of building an AI product:
• Product refinement
• Architecture
• AI logic
• Deployment

⚡ Demo Day: Wednesday, April 29
(In Person, 6:00 PM – 8:45 PM)
Teams will present their projects in front of judges and the community, demonstrate what they built, and celebrate the results.
Hosted again at Improving's offices

👥 Speakers & Mentors
We’re fortunate to have a great lineup of practitioners guiding the program:

• Vivek Acharya
• Vishu Andavilli
• Kevin Brown
• Anil Pantangi
• Damian Igbe
• Sanjay Kalluvilayil
• Ryan Eggleston
• Derrick Bozkurt

✋ Who Should Join
This program is open to builders of all backgrounds, including:
• Developers (frontend, backend, ML, infrastructure)
• Product managers, designers, and analysts
• Founders exploring AI product ideas
• Students and career-switchers
• Anyone interested in collaborating and building AI software

🤖 No prior AI experience is required.
Teams are balanced across skillsets so everyone can contribute and learn.

You don’t need to arrive with a fully formed idea—many projects come together during kickoff weekend.

💰 Cost
FREE to participate.

Registration will remain open until March 18, at which point we will balance teams ahead of kickoff.

🌐 Stay Connected
Be sure to check us out at www.promptengineers.ai, and join our Slack channel and Meetup group to stay connected with the community.

For questions or sponsorship opportunities, reach out to Derrick Bozkurt via LinkedIn.