EUDIS Defence Hackathon and Mentoring - PORTUGAL Autumn

EUDIS DEFENCE HACKATHON AND MENTORSHIP PROGRAMME 👾

The EUDIS Defence Hackathon will be hosted in eight simultaneous hackathons at different national locations across EU Member States and Norway that tackle pressing defence challenges for the European Defence industry.

In addition to local prizes, the eight national hackathon winners gain access to 40 hours of mentoring programme held over two months, get to pitch in front of EU Member States representatives, and the top three EU-wide winners get to attend an international high-tech event to pitch their solutions. The mentoring programme will support the eight winning teams in building sustainable and successful businesses, introducing them to important defence knowledge and contacts.

EUDIS DEFENCE HACKATHON  IN PORTUGAL 🇵🇹

The EUDIS Defence Hackathon in Portugal is hosted by

Hosting Organisation:	Productized
City:	Lisbon
Venue:	Técnico Innovation Center (TIC)

Sponsors:

Critical software

AED -Cluster Portugal

Saab

Engineers HUB

Partners:
Ordem dos Engenheiros
IST Técnico Lisboa
MEO - Serviços de Comunicações e Multimédia

EUDIS PORTUGAL Defence Hackathon local Prizes

APPLICATION: Register for the hackathon!👾

Ready to dive into the EUDIS Hackathon &  Mentorship program?  Begin by clicking either the "⚡ LOG IN TO JOIN" or "⚡JOIN HACKATHON" button, depending on whether you're already a TAIKAI member or need to create a new account. 

Your registration is complete after submitting the registration form, we can help you find a team in case you join alone. 

Congratulations, you're in!  Your next mission: assemble your team. Head over to the matchmaking section to find collaborators. Remember, teams must be finalized before the Hackathon Weekend kicks off.

TAIKAI will not be used for Jury and mentoring.

THREE CHALLENGES: Which one will you solve?💡

Please note that our challenges are referred to as 'Categories' inside the TAIKAI platform!

1️⃣) Protection of space assets – detect, analyse and counter threats in space  

With adversaries developing anti-satellite weapons, orbital jammers, and cyberattacks, Europe's space assets (navigation, communications, and Earth observation) are under threat. This challenge addresses the need for solutions that contribute to protect space assets from fast-developing threats through detection and analysis capacity (support to space domain awareness) and countermeasures.

2️⃣) Space for defence – Earth-Observation, Navigation, Communication, and coordination of multi-domain military operations

This challenge addresses the need for innovative space-based solutions to support military missions and operations, including in the field of earth-observation, positioning, navigation and timing, secured communications, space-based missile early-warning, and collection and processing of multi-sources data (and increased resilience of such capabilities).

3️⃣)  Sovereign Aerospace – Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, Management, Production, and Countermeasures

Autonomous drones (military and civilian), aircraft, and weapon systems are redefining aerospace. The challenge addresses the need for innovative solutions in different areas.

• Airspace monitoring solutions to detect and respond to hostile or unknown airborne objects with automated countermeasures.
• Better recognition and disablement of fibre-optic drones in ambush situations.
• Repurposing existing space hardware and software for military application in the aerospace domain with the focus on launch systems, clearance, and trajectory calculations.
• Developing drone management hardware and software related to navigation, vision, and AI to enable independent flight and decision-making at scale for intelligence gathering and air support.
• Manufacturing drone hardware and prototyping capabilities to increase drone capabilities and scaling.

HACKERS: Who can participate?

You must be a citizen AND resident from EU/Norway/Ukraine and be 18 years or older to participate in the hackathon competition. Failure to provide proof during the hackathon on such terms will disqualify you. All teams must have at least 2 members and a submitted project. (To register you don't need a team - go to FAQ for more information)

OFFICIAL AGENDA📅  Timezone: Lisbon, Portugal (WEST)

‼️ Disclaimer - Agenda can be updated anytime!

Friday – Kick-off & Inspiration✨

• 13:00 Welcome coffee & checkin
• 14:00 Opening Ceremony
• 14:05 Welcoming words
• 14:15  First expert keynote (defense innovation / dual-use deeptech)
• 14:35 Intros with countries & participant lightning pitches
• 14:50 Moderator on hackathon rules, schedule, and prizes
• 15:15 Team formation & challenge deep-dive (mentors explain defense challenges)
• 16:30 Icebreaker activity + networking
• 17:00 Checkpoint with each country (ensure teams formed, ideas aligned)
• 18:00 Hacking officially begins 🚀
• 20:00 Free Pizza🍕 Dinner & informal mentors distribution and Q&A

Saturday – Hacking & Mentorship👾

• 08:00 Welcome coffee & breakfast
• 09:00 Morning standup & motivational check-in
• 09:15  DefenceTech expert keynote (cybersecurity, AI, dual-use applications)
• 09:45 Team hacking time + mentor rounds (focus on feasibility & defense applications)
• 12:30  Lunch break
• 13:30  Mentorship round 2 (focus on technical depth & impact)
• 15:30  Thematic workshop: From Prototype to Deployment in Defense (by DroneAid Collective)
• 17:00  Checkpoint with each country (progress, blockers, mentor feedback)
• 17:30  Pitch training: How to make your perfect pitch
• 20:00 Dinner & informal networking
• 21:00  Night hacking sprint (optional, with mentors on-call for 1:1s)

Sunday – Pitch & Celebrate📣

• 08:00 Welcome coffee & breakfast
• 09:00 Opening session (welcoming words & agenda)
• 09:05 Defence founder inspirational stories
• 09:45 Final hacking sprint (teams polish prototypes & decks)
• 11:30  Pitch mentoring & last feedback round
• 12:00 Pitch dry-runs with mentors (time-keeping + storytelling)
• 12:30 Lunch break
• 13:00 Final pitches (jury + defense/tech experts)
• 14:30 Moderator: each location announces winners
• 15:05 DEFIS closing speech & awards
• 15:30 Celebration & networking

‼️Good to know

💤 - You can stay the night at the event location from Friday (oct 17) to Sunday (oct 19).

⛺️ - But bring your own stuff! (sleeping bag, camping mat, toiletries and other...)

💻 - Bring your own laptop and equipments (we will have power sockets)

🍕 - All meals and drinks are included with your participation.

⚡️ -  Energy drinks are on the house!

IMPORTANT DATES🚨

01 Registration closes : October 10th

The final date to register for the hackathon. Make sure your team is signed up and ready by this date!

02 Hackathon weekend : October 17th - 19th

Across eight simultaneous locations in Europe teams develop solutions to three important defence challenges. 

03 Hackathon demoday : October 17th

Discover the startups reshaping defense innovation at the Demoday — where cutting-edge tech meets mission-critical impact. Join us to see the future of security and resilience being built today.

REGISTER HERE

04 Mentorship program : October 28th

Engage in a focused mentorship phase where you'll refine your ideas with the help of experienced mentors and prepare your solutions for the hackathon.

05 Live pitching in front of EU member states

After the mentorship program, winners will have the unique opportunity to participate in an exclusive EU-wide live pitching competition on .

This is an exciting next step for the top teams to showcase their innovative solutions, compete against other top participants across Europe, and potentially secure further EU recognition and awards. 

Our community partners! ✨

Community partner
Innovation Scene PT
Website	Innovation Scene PT