OpenHack ’26, a student-led technology event combining a 24-hour hackathon with a dedicated tech conference, will take place at MUET SZAB Campus in Khairpur Mir’s from October 13 to 15, 2026. The event is organized by the Department of Software Engineering and marks the second edition of the annual hackathon, following the success of its inaugural run in 2025.
The hackathon component will run for 24 hours on October 13 and 14, with teams of two to three university students competing to build working software under time pressure. Registration for the hackathon costs PKR 1,000 per team, and participants will receive guidance from mentors throughout the event while working on challenges centered around artificial intelligence, machine learning, and open source development. The organizers have framed this edition around the themes of AI, open source, and the spirit of Hacktoberfest, aiming to bring these areas together under a single event for the university’s developer community.
Following the hackathon, OpenHack ’26 will host a free technology conference on October 15, featuring keynote speeches, industry talks, and panel discussions covering real world applications of AI and open source software, along with the future of technology careers. The conference is open to developers, researchers, students, entrepreneurs, and industry professionals, giving attendees who may not participate in the hackathon itself an opportunity to engage with the event’s broader programming.
The inaugural OpenHack ’25 was won by team Dev Verse, who took home a PKR 10,000 prize, setting a precedent for the competitive element of this year’s edition, though the grand prize for OpenHack ’26 has not yet been announced. The event is supported by GitHub as its education partner, and registrations for both the hackathon and the free conference are open through the event’s official registration forms. The organizing team includes faculty coordinators and student directors from the Department of Software Engineering, with the department positioning OpenHack as an annual fixture at MUET SZAB Campus going forward, with a third edition already planned for 2027.
Follow the SPIN IDG WhatsApp Channel for updates across the Smart Pakistan Insights Network covering all of Pakistan’s technology ecosystem.
