Hackathons: Where Coding Meets Creativity & the Human Spirit

You’re sitting in the large glass room at the Life Sciences Institute. Computer science majors sit in the thick sound of typing. The gentle murmurs of “oh shit” and “hell yes” accent the vacuous space. A man wearing a dinosaur costume walks up to you. He silently hands you a bright pink energy drink with enough caffeine to make you worried. He daps you up and moves on to the next person. It’s 3 p.m. — 21 more hours until the end of the cmd-f hackathon. This intense, 24-hour coding sprint, like many others, highlights the dedication – and perhaps the slightly obsessive tendencies – of those drawn to the world of computer science.

Hackathons are a cornerstone of computer science education and culture. Each participant, working individually or in teams of up to four, attempts to create a functioning computer program within a strict 24-hour timeframe. The goal is to solve a problem aligned with the judges’ criteria, starting at noon one day and concluding at noon the next.

The experience isn’t for the faint of heart. Friends who participated in similar events last year described it as difficult, miserable, and harrowing. Yet, they also confessed it was one of the most enjoyable weekends they’d ever had – a testament to the unique blend of challenge, collaboration, and creative problem-solving that defines these events.

nwPlus, based at the University of British Columbia (UBC), is a key organizer of these hackathons. They host three major events annually: HackCamp in mid-November, designed as a beginner-friendly introduction; nwHacks in early January, which bills itself as the largest hackathon in Western Canada with 734 competitors in 2025 and is open to all skill levels; and cmd-f in early March, specifically for underrepresented genders in computer science.

Tracy La, the logistics director of cmd-f, is a third-year student double majoring in microbiology & immunology and computer science. Initially pre-med, she discovered her passion for coding in an introductory programming course. As an alumna of cmd-f, she spearheaded significant changes to the event this year, moving away from rigid categories. “I think [the change] encompasses our Alice in Wonderland theme this year,” she said. “It’s tipsy topsy turvy. Do whatever you aim for and only let your creativity be your limitation.”

Hackathons provide a safe space to experiment with computer skills. Participants aren’t graded, and the experience doesn’t affect their academic transcript. Tracy emphasized that this “safety net” allows participants to explore without fear of jeopardizing their overall academic standing.

However, that doesn’t diminish the intensity of the effort. Participants often push themselves to their limits, sacrificing sleep, health, and comfort to solve a problem they conceived just hours before. The dedication is striking, reminiscent of obsessive painters or artisans deeply immersed in their craft.

This dedication takes on a novel dimension in light of recent developments in artificial intelligence. A recent article in The New York Times explored the anxieties of seasoned programmers grappling with the rise of AI coding tools. The article concluded with a sobering thought: “skills that seemed the most technical and forbidding can turn out to be the ones most easily automated. Social and imaginative ones come to the fore. We will produce fewer first drafts and do more judging, while perhaps feeling uneasy about how well we can still judge. Abstraction may be coming for us all.”

Does AI threaten to strip the soul from coding? Is there an inherent human element in the process of writing code – the problem-solving, the creativity – that could be lost to automation? Does this elevate coding to an art form? These were the questions I brought to cmd-f, hoping to witness the artistry firsthand.

During the hackathon, I connected with several teams. Members of UBC Women in Computer Science (WiCS) were present, including Selin Uz (a sixth-year CS major and WiCS co-president), Katja Radovic-Jonsson (a third-year CS major and WiCS community events director), and Maryum Chaudhry (a third-year business and CS double major and WiCS graphic designer). They had an idea for a project leveraging psychological research to help users reframe their thoughts and communications.

Liza Junaidi, Nicole Schroeder, and Mahtab Zehtab (all third-year CS students) formed another team. They quickly welcomed Britney (also a third-year CS student) into their group, demonstrating the communal spirit often found at these events. Their project aimed to solve a practical problem: the difficulty of booking study rooms, which requires navigating multiple websites.

Evan Sun, Paul Xu, and Ryan Liu (all second-year CS students) tackled a more ambitious project: an AI-powered presentation coaching tool that analyzes video recordings to provide feedback on pacing, filler words, and overall communication skills.

Charlotte Jacques and Manya Goel (third-year and fourth-year CS students, respectively) traveled from the University of Victoria to participate. They envisioned a program that delivers positive news stories tailored to user interests, utilizing Anthropic’s Claude AI model.

All teams incorporated large language models (LLMs) into their projects, either as a central component or as a supporting tool. Sponsors even offered prizes for the best use of their LLMs. While I’ve generally approached AI with caution, cmd-f offered a different perspective – a chance to witness it as a tool, a “sidekick” as Tracy put it, rather than a threat.

As the afternoon progressed, the scope of the projects became clearer. The WiCS team experienced a smooth workflow, collaborating effectively and refining their design. The UVic students encountered a frustrating bug that took them two hours to resolve, but they persevered with fine spirits.

The team working on the AI coaching program faced significant challenges, each member absorbed in their own struggles. The library study room team encountered unexpected bugs, while the WiCS team continued to polish their already impressive application.

Dinner arrived, but few paused to eat. Each participant was fully immersed in their project. The atmosphere was quiet, focused, and fueled by a shared sense of purpose.

As night fell, the energy in the room shifted. The UVic students returned home to continue working, while the library team battled a deteriorating front end. The AI coaching team, after hours of struggle, finally managed to train their AI model. The WiCS team, having completed their project, headed home around 11:30 p.m.

The late-night atmosphere was surreal, a limbo space where conversations felt both fleeting and permanent. People were both intensely focused and visibly exhausted.

Organizers hosted a karaoke session at 10:30 p.m., providing a brief respite from the coding frenzy. I joined in, belting out “Call Me Maybe” with another participant.

I sampled the provided energy drinks – a decision I quickly regretted. The Alani Nu pink energy drink was, in my opinion, best avoided.

Returning the next morning, I found Evan Sun surrounded by empty energy drink wrappers and snack containers. He had coded continuously since the start of the hackathon, only pausing briefly to eat. His website had crashed, leaving him visibly drained.

As the deadline approached, the teams made final adjustments. The UVic students were content with their progress, while the library team lamented having to hardcode some features. The WiCS team had a polished, fully functional application. And, in the final moments, the AI coaching team managed to submit their project.

Typing reached a fever pitch, culminating in the closing of the submission window. A collective sigh of relief swept through the room. The projects – Rabbit Hole (WiCS), Study Room Hunt (library team), Echo (AI coaching), and The Optimist (UVic) – were submitted for judging.

Echo won a pilot program award, securing funding and support for further development. Rabbit Hole received recognition for its innovative use of Gemini.

These participants poured their hearts and souls into their code. It was a labor of love, a testament to the human spirit. The question remains: as AI becomes more prevalent, will that spirit be lost? Harjot Singh, a CS and interactive art and technology major at SFU, offered a compelling perspective. He believes coding has always been an art form, but that AI-generated code lacks the feeling and emotion that define human creativity. It’s about efficiency, not artistry.

To work in computer science is to problem-solve with the soul. That’s why people endure long hours and intense challenges. It’s where human ingenuity meets the power of the machine.

I hope that, even as AI evolves, computer scientists will continue to code with that same passion and dedication. The loss of that human element would be a significant one.

Perhaps I’ll try writing some code myself… after I’ve had some sleep.