Blind Data: A Chart Competition

One dataset. Seventy-five minutes. May the best chart win.

Join tcplot for Blind Data, our first chart competition — blind because nobody sees the dataset until the clock starts. Everyone gets the same never-before-seen data at the same moment, a hard time limit, and total freedom of tools: D3 or ggplot2, Tableau or Excel, Claude Code or colored pencils. When time is called, every chart goes up, everyone presents for sixty seconds, and the room votes.
How it works:

• Rules & setup — form solo entries or pairs and get your tools ready. The dataset stays sealed until the clock starts.
• Dataset reveal — one clean CSV with a short data dictionary. The challenge is design, not decoding.
• Build sprint (75 minutes) — any tool, any medium, any level of interactivity.
• Gallery walk & lightning presentations — sixty seconds each: what you found, what you encoded, one decision you'd defend.
• Vote & awards — four categories: Clearest, Most Beautiful, Most Surprising, and People's Choice. One entry, one prize, so the glory spreads.

The rules: any tool is legal and AI assistants are welcome. Solo or pairs. The event dataset must be the star (joining in outside data is allowed — and has won chartathons before). When time is called, hands off. And no, you can't vote for your own entry.

Bring a laptop with your weapon of choice installed and working — seventy-five minutes is too short to fight an environment. Or go analog: paper and markers provided. If you plan to use an AI tool, log in before the clock starts.

Everyone is welcome, from first-chart beginners to people with strong opinions about axis label rotation. The time limit is a great equalizer: nobody's polish survives seventy-five minutes, so what wins is ideas. Competitive in format, friendly in fact.