🤖 Civic Tech Hackathon: Chatbots for Public Safety
Build smarter, safer communities — one chatbot at a time.
Join this online hackathon and create AI-driven public safety tools to serve the people of Indianapolis, Indiana. Compete for $1,700 in cash prizes while solving real-world civic challenges!
📅 Event Info
🗓️ Dates: May 12 – May 30, 2025
🌍 Location: Online
💸 Cost: Free to participate
🎯 Challenge Theme: Empowering Indiana Communities
🏙️ Develop chatbot systems designed for 870,000+ Indianapolis residents
🔒 Focus areas: Public safety, emergency alerts, hazard reporting, and civic communication
🌐 Create tech that bridges the gap between citizens and civic services
🛠️ What You’ll Build
🤖 A chatbot that supports large-scale, real-world usage
🛎️ Key features may include:
- Hazard reporting (e.g., potholes, broken streetlights)
- Emergency alert system (weather, safety threats)
- Civic resource guide (shelters, helplines, safety tips)
- FAQ assistant for Indiana public safety protocols
📤 What to Submit
📹 Video Demo (3 mins):
- Show how your chatbot works
- Host it on YouTube, Twitter, LinkedIn, or GitHub
💻 GitHub Repo:
- Share complete code with README
🏆 Prizes ($1,700 Total)
🥇 Gold Prize: $1,000 cash (Best Overall)
🥈 Silver Prize: $700 cash (Best Code & Functionality)
🧠 Judging Criteria
💻 Tech Implementation
- Code quality, testing, performance
- Smart use of APIs and tools
🌍 Social Impact
- Scale and integration potential
- Relevance to public needs
📐 System Design
- Clean UX/UI and backend design
- Full-stack integration
💡 Innovation
- Unique ideas or fresh approaches
- Clear improvement over existing tools
💡 Idea Starters
💬 Non-emergency chatbot for local issue reporting
🌩️ Real-time public safety alert system
🏠 Emergency shelter locator and hotline directory
📚 AI FAQ bot for civic safety education
📢 Your code could shape the future of civic safety in Indiana.
Think big. Build bold. Serve the community.
