BBVA launches the 2020 Hackathon to solve 12 digital transformation challenges in banking
In its efforts to continue supporting the financial group’s digital transformation, BBVA Hackathon is announcing its 20th edition, which will take place on October 16th - 18th. It will be virtual this year, with countries participating where BBVA Open Innovation has a presence like Mexico, Spain, Colombia and Peru.
BBVA Open Innovation continues building ties with the ecosystem of entrepreneurs and developers - not only in Mexico as the host country - but bringing together international talent to develop innovative solutions for the challenges posed by BBVA. It will take place as part of a fun and highly intense programming competition that aims to impact the ecosystem of developers through collaboration with experts from different business areas in BBVA, and strategic partnerships with the ecosystem of entrepreneurs in Mexico.
An at-home competition
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, participants in the BBVA Hackathon 2020 will do all the work from the security of their homes. Each participating country will pose a challenge, and four challenges will come from Mexico as the host country of this unique edition. The BBVA Group (holding) will also propose a challenge, and strategic partners will pose two challenges, for a total of 12 challenges distributed in the following manner:
- 8 challenges in total from the business areas of the participating countries.
- One sustainability challenge.
- And 1 challenge using CISCO technology.
- 1 challenge from Tata Consultancy Services (TCS)
- And other one challenge from Amazon (AWS).
Strategic partnerships will be a key aspect of this first virtual hackathon, as they will be in charge of providing participants the technological tools and knowledge to do this competition from home. They are CISCO, Tata Consultancy Services, Amazon (AWS), Sofware Gurú and the International Finance Corporation (IFC).
Sustainability challenge
In line with one of the BBVA Group’s pillars on sustainability, IFC, which is part of the World Bank Group and the main international development institution exclusively dedicated to the private sector in developing countries, is joining this event for the second time and will propose a challenge related to sustainability.
Participants’ profiles
This year there will be no charge to participate in the event. Over 500 people are expected to participate - people with a background consistent with teamwork, who think out of the box like programmers, developers, data scientists, marketers, economists, financial experts - all with an interest in innovation. They are creative, empowered, effective communicators, proactive, capable of receiving feedback, agile integration and have the ability to communicate their ideas clearly.
Participants will receive support from industry experts during the event and will be able to utilize and integrate the latest technologies, products, tools and services from BBVA and its partners.
Solutions to challenges
With the slogan { stay : [ 'home', 'inspired', 'coding' ], participants will form teams of two to six people to build a solution from scratch in 40 uninterrupted hours. They will have the benefit of doing so from their favorite spot at home.
BBVA Open Innovation is interested in finding solutions to the group’s challenges by posing specific challenges to be solved during the hackathon, such as: optimizing products, developments and solutions; finding ideas for technology or products that are not being developed; identifying improvements in existing products; brand visibility and positioning as an innovated technology company; as well as positioning within the developer communities.
This event also aims to collaborate with the ecosystem of entrepreneurs by promoting collaborative work and problem-solving, allowing them to put into practice and enhance their soft skills like teamwork, effective communication and adaptability. Participants will also be able to see what it’s like to create a business opportunity and establish a startup, and learn how to transform an idea into something innovative that changes and transforms people’s lives, enjoying the energy and passion that come with the hackathon.
Prior to this hackathon, those selected to participate will have virtual training sessions that will take place from September 28th to October 2nd.
Prizes
The winning team with the best development at the BBVA Hackathon 2020 competition will receive 80,000 pesos (approximately $3,500). The winning team from each of the challenges will receive 40,000 pesos.
Those interested in participating in the BBVA Hackathon can register here and fill out a profile form.