The Metaverse offers the blending of offline and online experiences through augmented reality and the virtual world. By corralling as many builders, engineers, and creatives as possible, there's a real opportunity to discover something innovative at a hackathon that focuses on a more decentralized Metaverse.
If you think you can use the blockchain to develop original games, Web3, 3D tools, and NFTs, consider joining the Metaverse Hackathon to make an impact.
What Is a Metaverse Hackathon?
The Metaverse is a virtual reality construct that places users in a digital universe. Apps that involve purchasing digital land, online gaming, using a cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin or Ethereum, and more, allow users to engage in real-time digital experiences with one another.
It will take years for the Metaverse to truly come together, but contributing to the hackathon puts the power in the hands of the participants. The tracks for the hackathon will focus on digital identities and gaming.
Essentially, any idea that you have will make the Metaverse a cool virtual world to hang out with friends. That could include using blockchain technology, cryptocurrency, augmented reality tools, virtual reality tools, design, 3D, art, data, or any other factors that you could imagine as a part of the Metaverse.
Benefits of Hosting Hackathon for Metaverse Development
Several benefits come with hosting a hackathon to shape the future of the Metaverse.
Innovation
A hackathon allows blockchain enthusiasts and other brilliant minds to come together to showcase innovative ideas and work on Metaverse projects that interest them. Those that want to expand their skills and learn while contributing to the infrastructure of the Metaverse will enjoy the process.
Using the newest blockchain technology, bringing experienced developers in, enticing entrepreneurs, and drawing attention to the need for educating one another while building makes for a more well-rounded event.
Decentralization
Decentralization is critical when a project as big as the Metaverse takes form. Instead of relying on one central authority to make decisions in the best interest of everyone, the power goes to the numerous participants that will spend their time enjoying the system.
A DAO (decentralized autonomous organization) dissolves trust issues and brings about empowerment, and allows for expansion by making the network open to all. Anyone can contribute an app, product, or service to make the network better in a DAO. When the organization or program is under one entity, they decide what can and cannot get built or added.
Security
When you host a hackathon and have multiple teams of people working together to build a system with users in mind, they can focus more on cybersecurity. It allows more development and attention to shoring up the Metaverse and the apps people will use when engaged. It's especially helpful when more than a few people are working on Metaverse projects because they can catch deficiencies more easily.
How To Run a Metaverse Hackathon: A Full 7-Step Guide
These group events are full of improvisational solutions and innovative ideas to solve difficult technological problems. Use the following steps as a template to make sure your first hackathon goes off without a hitch.
1. Select the Right Space and Time
It's essential to select the right location for the hackathon. If it's physical, you want a large and open space where everyone can gather. If you're hosting a virtual event, make sure everything is set up for a smooth event at a convenient time without network disruptions.
2. Promote Your Event
Ensure that you promote the event and make everyone aware of what's going on. A virtual sign-in sheet is a good option to collect everyone's information.
It should be easily accessible and list the hours the event will take place. Advertise the event on social network sites such as Reddit. Provide details on when the event starts, the prize pool, and any other pertinent information.
3. Select Judges and Establish Criteria
You must clearly define the point of the hackathon. What problems do you want to tackle? This helps establish the criteria that the judges will use to rate the participant's ideas. This will also help them understand what the judges are looking at when selecting a winner. Consider the following criteria:
- How creative is the solution? (Innovation)
- What technology was involved in developing this solution? (Technology)
- What impact does your solution make? (Application)
Depending on how big your hackathon is, you'll scale your judges to the appropriate number. In general, three to five judges are sufficient. Consider asking local community members from a governing office or a sponsoring company to become a judge. Be sure to clearly inform them of their duties.
4. Secure the Right Equipment
If you're hosting a virtual event, make sure you have the correct equipment. This could require you to publish a list of items each team should have on hand. That could include a whiteboard, extra routers, spare cables, USB drives, power drives, and other essential electrical equipment.
5. Allow for Adequate Preparation
Ensure that you have everything set up and prepared hours before the event starts. If your event was physical, it would require chair and table setup, name tags, etc.
If the event is virtual, you'll need to ensure that you have everything ready for presentations, check-ins, and any other integral process of the Metaverse hackathon.
For example, check your internet connection, and start a few minutes early to do a check-in to see if all the hackers that signed up have shown up. Likewise, go over the rules and criteria with the judges, and get everything and everyone in place as much as is possible.
Also, check into your backup plans in case something goes wrong mid-day. You have to be able to handle unexpected situations without ruining the flow of the event.
6. Ensure That the Event Goes Well
When setting up the meeting, be sure to have some volunteers shadow the teams of hackers so that they can answer any questions that the teams may have. Furthermore, have contingency plans in place in case something goes awry.
For instance, let's say the Wi-Fi goes on the fritz. You'd want to have a viable alternative in place for this situation. One alternative could be to have ethernet connections as a backup plan.
7. Follow-Up
After hosting your first hackathon, the work isn't quite done yet. The next step is to send an email to everyone in attendance. Inside the email, thank them for their participation and give them pertinent information about any upcoming events you may be hosting.
You can also take advantage of the opportunity to ask for your participants' feedback. Perhaps those who've been to a hackathon before will offer insightful feedback on what you could do to improve the next event.
Common Mistakes To Avoid When Hosting Metaverse Hackathons
When hosting a Metaverse hackathon, there are some common mistakes that hosts can make that will derail the success of an event. The following are some Metaverse hackathon mistakes that you want to avoid.
Mistake #1: You Don't Have a Marketing Plan
Although you may have the best tools, your virtual hackathon is almost certain to fall short of expectations if you neglect to have a marketing plan. This is because you need to identify and engage the audience you want to target specifically. Ask yourself the following questions:
- What people or groups do you want to attend the hackathon?
- Where can you find these guests?
- Do you have the university contacts, a Press release, or personnel to help you to promote the hackathon, such as brand ambassadors?
Prevention
You must narrow down the audience by clearly defining who they are, whether local, national, or even global. You have to strategize to influence your target audience to participate.
At this time, it will also be a good idea to garner stakeholders' participation so that they can help to advertise or even sponsor your event if possible. Remember, don't deviate from the schedule.
Mistake #2: Uninformed Judges and Mentors
A stellar hackathon has great judges and mentors. Mentors are essential because their job is to be there for team guidance, so make sure that they come from various backgrounds.
Usually, mentors are members of the organization hosting the event. However, you can partner with universities, consulting teams, or even co-host companies to aid you.
You shouldn't overlook the importance of having both management and technical mentors. A common error made on virtual hackathons is choosing mentors who do not complement your event's needs. Therefore they can't adequately tend to the potential problems you define.
Prevention
Let's say that your hackathon targets developers. In this instance, it would be a good idea to have a blockchain developer or a respected software developer on your list.
Additionally, you should have a project manager who is familiar with the role of a developer and have someone from communications ready to help the teams communicate effectively.
Having a fair, qualified, transparent, and trustworthy judging panel is crucial because it encourages talents to perform their best to complete all tasks. Likewise, as a result, talents are likely to continue to the final pitch phase.
Mistake #3: No Sponsors or Partners
The nature of a hackathon operates like an open innovation challenge. This kind of event attracts external stakeholders and even people outside of your organization to get together for problem-solving.
Therefore if you are a startup promoting a virtual hackathon or a small business, you are sure to impress your guests only if other brands are in attendance alongside you.
Prevention
Search for reputable and known sponsors and partners to help your online Metaverse hackathon grow. Encourage them to use their reach to promote your hackathon on their social media channels. They should be willing to do this since this is a win-win situation for both parties.
Moreover, there's a strong possibility that even software devs and government agencies may want to contribute. They may be people who do not make monetary donations but are willing to become in-kind sponsors, offering useful equipment, food, and volunteers.
10 Inspiring Metaverse Hackathon Ideas
To map the Metaverse, there needs to be transversal knowledge present across entertainment, technology, society, and culture. Here are some cool ideas from the Metaverse Alliance Global Metathon in 2021 held by Metaverse Alliance (LD Capital), which birthed awesome programs from the creative minds of today.
My Meta Farm
This open-world game is a farming NFT game project similar to Animal Crossing. In this game, players develop their own virtual world, raise livestock, rent shops, decorate houses, cultivate crops, take care of pets, buy items and develop resources in-game for rent or convert them into actual currency.
MetaOasis
MetaOasis is an online sci-fi-themed multiplayer game that's available across multiple platforms. You can use this virtual world for more than just games as well.
MetaLoop
This platform is a learn-to-earn system with millions of college students participating, and it aims to teach and accelerate the use of blockchain to college students in a game format.
Neo3D Live!
Here is where live video conferencing is intermingled with a 3D virtual world. This is indeed the first user and developer-friendly Metaverse.
4EVERLAND
4EVERLAND is a Web 3.0 cloud computing platform. 4EVERLAND integrates network core functions, storage, and computing.
Capsid
Capsid is a non-fungible token derivative protocol that gives owners the ability to issue "rights" to earn revenue from derivative services and products.
Themis Protocol
Themis gives users the ability to access NFT leverage, NFT collateral, and GameFi liquidity. Furthermore, you can earn DeFi yields by spending, not trading and gaming.
MetaMobile
Reputable and renowned car designers created MetaMobile. The objective is to give players in the Metaverse cutting-edge mobile transportation.
Cosmic Factions
This blockchain-based virtual ecosystem in gaming format hosts many competing groups in an ever-expanding and integrated ecosystem.
Hoglet
Hoglet is a marketplace for users to trade future NFTs. Hoglet has recently been renamed Open Land.
Looking for a Good Hackathon Platform To Organize Your Metaverse Event? Try Hackathon.com
Hackathon.com is the perfect platform to organize your event because it gives you optimized visibility, professional mentorship, and training videos. They host a variety of topics such as transportation, big data, blockchain technology, industry, and more.
By signing up on hackathon.com, you can access a wide range of resources to help you host a fun and exciting event. You can choose between an online event or a local program in various cities listed on the site.
Final Points
Even though hosting a hackathon demands effort and dedication, it will be well worth the work. If you market the event, choose a great venue, ensure that you have the necessary equipment, and give yourself more than enough time to prepare, initiatives like these will be a hit within the tech community.
If you’re ready to get started with organizing your hackathon, contact us. Our team is ready to help you!
