So what actually happens at a hackathon?

There’s 16:22:18 left, according to the timer on the big screen. Around 500 hackers have a total of 36 hours to solve their case study. More than half the time has already passed. It’s Thursday morning in Olma Hall 2 in St. Gallen; the hackathon that’s part of the START Global Summit is well underway. At long rows of tables, young people are hunched over their laptops, discussing, typing, studying, drinking coffee.

Among them is 23-year-old Christopher Mandiratta. The Zurich-born student is in the sixth semester of his business-management degree at the University of St. Gallen and is taking part in a hackathon for the first time. «I heard about the event at the university and thought it would be a good experience,» explains Christopher. He then teamed up with three friends: Matthias Otth and Benjamin Simmonds, who are studying computer science at ETH Zurich, and his fellow student Michel Lucas Camor, who’s also studying business management. They’re all hackathon novices.

The hackathon actually started the previous evening. Nine companies each presented their own task for the teams of hackers. One of them was Sunrise, represented by Tom Spycher and Philipp Spinnler, who along with their team developed yallo TV and Live MySport. Tom appeared on stage to set the hackers the Sunrise task, titled «Join the Revolution: Sunrise Search for the Ultimate Social TV Experience». The aim was to create different interaction options for the MySports and yallo TV packages that Sunrise offers.

«The Sunrise project really grabbed us because it requires both technical and conceptual skills,» explains Christopher. And they were also swayed by their gut feeling: Everyone really wanted to work with Tom and Philipp.

It all started at exactly 22:00 on Wednesday evening. Christopher and his team began with a brainstorming session on a digital flipchart. The four students discussed a number of ideas, considered what was feasible and consulted the clients Tom and Philipp. On the first night, they decided on four ideas that they wanted to pursue. Their goal was to develop at least two of them to the extent that they could be showcased in the final presentation.

«Communication within the team is the most important thing,» says Matthias. «You’ve got to be willing to compromise, because in the end everyone needs to be happy with the result,» adds Benjamin. What was also helpful was that the four of them had already decided how to split the tasks during the preparation stage – each team member had their own role at the hackathon and played their part in ensuring it would be a success.

On both nights, the hackers kept working until the early hours of the morning – until 3:00 on the first night and 5:00 on the second. While those who traveled from far afield needed to grab a little rest in their sleeping bags on a camping mat, the four students were able to enjoy the comfort of their own beds or sleep on a friend’s sofa.

Friday morning, just before 10:00. Fatigue and nervousness ahead of their «pitch» was written all over the four hackers’ faces. In a five-minute presentation, they had to persuade Tom and his team that theirs was the best solution. If they beat the other eleven Sunrise teams, they’d each get a set of PlayStation VR glasses and a chance to take part in the final, where the overall winners will be crowned. Speaking perfect English, business students Christopher and Michel, who want to go on to forge a career as consultants, presented their solution. In the end, they came third, two points behind the winning team. What ultimately tipped the balance? «All the solutions were very good and most of them followed a similar pathway. It was fascinating to see the nuances. The winning team convinced us with a hack that considers every single aspect. In theory, we could start planning and implementing it straight away,» says Tom. Whether it actually happens is a decision for the yallo product team.

And what’s the verdict of the group of hackers from Zurich? «It was fun, we learned new things and met new people,» says Michel. And Christopher’s already certain: «We’ll be back next year.»

TV subscriptions from Sunrise – television, streaming and much more!