HackIllinois
HackIllinois is a student-run annual hackathon at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, hosting nearly 1,000 students for a 36-hour weekend event each spring. It is funded by corporate sponsorships (Google, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, and others) and is free to attend for participants.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2013
- HeadquartersChicago, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What HackIllinois does
HackIllinois is a student-run hackathon organization operating under the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, founded in October 2013 with its inaugural event in 2014. Each spring it hosts a 36-hour weekend hackathon at the Siebel Center for Computer Science, drawing nearly 1,000 students from colleges and universities nationwide, with the 2026 event awarding over $75,000 in prizes. The organization is structured into five student-led sub-teams (Experience, Outreach, Systems, Design, and Marketing) and is governed by annually rotating co-directors.
The organization's product surface consists of an annual flagship hackathon, an iOS and Android mobile app used for attendee check-in, point collection, and event notifications, a portfolio of year-specific event websites (hackillinois.org plus annual microsites), and an internal API built and maintained by a dedicated Systems sub-team. For 2024 and 2025, it layered two exclusive competitive sub-tracks on top of the main event: HackKnights and HackOlympians, each with application-based admission, a coding-challenge requirement, and a $2,000 grand prize. Third-party infrastructure is sourced from Netlify (web hosting), Vercel (API deployment), and Cloudflare (CDN/security), with GitHub and Google OAuth handling mobile app authentication.
HackIllinois is not a venture-backed business and does not generate traditional revenue. It is funded through corporate sponsorships (Google, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, John Deere, Caterpillar, Capital One, Discover, Solana, and others) and direct support from UIUC. The event is free to attend for participants, including meals, with the sponsor-funded prize pool serving as the primary attendee value driver. The customer base is bipartite: student attendees (free, distributed across the Midwest and nationally) on the demand side, and a concentrated set of Fortune 500 and major tech sponsors on the supply side, accessed via a small student Outreach team.
HackIllinois firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- HackIllinois
- Legal name
- HackIllinois
- Website
- https://hackillinois.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2013
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- HackIllinois is a student-run annual hackathon at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, hosting nearly 1,000 students for a 36-hour weekend event each spring. It is funded by corporate sponsorships (Google, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, and others) and is free to attend for participants.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
HackIllinois industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Collegiate Hackathon Events
- NAICS
- Business Schools and Computer and Management Training (6114)
- SIC
- Services-Educational Services (8200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Competitive Programming & Algorithms (DSA, Olympiad-Style) (EDAMACAI)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Competition Coaching & Training Programs (AMC/AIME/USAMO/MathCounts) (EDAMAEAA)
Keywords
Where HackIllinois is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Chicago
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
HackIllinois business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others
Revenue model
- Corporate Sponsorships: Funding from corporate sponsors including Fortune 500 companies and major tech companies. Sponsors also provide prizes, workshops, and company-sponsored events. Past sponsors include Google, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, and many others.
- University Support: As an organization under the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), receives direct support from UIUC staff for hackathon organization and execution.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Annual | Free attendance for participants |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels6 records
HackIllinois product offering
Product offeringCore offering
HackIllinois is a student-run collegiate hackathon that hosts an annual 36-hour weekend event at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, drawing nearly 1,000 student participants who build innovative projects such as websites and mobile apps to compete for prizes exceeding $75k. The organization supports the event with a custom-built mobile application (iOS/Android), an internal API, and year-specific themed event microsites, and offers specialized competitive tracks (HackKnights, HackOlympians) for experienced hackers.
Product overview
HackIllinois operates as a student-run collegiate hackathon organization hosting an annual flagship event at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, supplemented by dedicated mobile and web platforms. The core offering is the hackathon itself — a 36-hour in-person event where nearly 1,000 students create innovative projects for prizes. This is supported by a HackIllinois Mobile App (iOS/Android) used for attendee check-in, point collection, event notifications, and leaderboards. The organization maintains multiple web properties: the main event site (hackillinois.org) and an informational site (info.hackillinois.org), plus year-specific microsites for each edition. Internal infrastructure includes an API developed by the Systems team. For competitive differentiation, the organization has introduced specialized sub-brands: HackIllinois Knights (2024) and HackOlympians (2025) — exclusive tracks for experienced hackers offering larger prizes and special networking opportunities.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- HackKnights: An exclusive track for experienced hackers introduced in 2024, featuring a $2,000 grand prize and specialized arena for competitive hackathon participants.
- HackOlympians
Companies that use HackIllinois
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
HackIllinois technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration8 records
Feature3 records
HackIllinois partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- GooglecoreMajor corporate sponsor of HackIllinois. Provides prizes and participates in company expo and Q&A sessions.
- ApplecoreCorporate sponsor providing technology prizes and brand support for hackathon participants.
- MetacoreCorporate sponsor involved in hackathon judging and prize provision.
- MicrosoftcoreCorporate sponsor providing prizes and participating in workshops and company events.
- SolanacorePowered HackIllinois 2024 event. Provides blockchain development prizes and tracks.
- John DeerecoreCorporate sponsor with Community & Sustainability track sponsorship. Active sponsor in multiple years.
- CaterpillarcoreCorporate sponsor providing prizes and participating in hackathon events.
- DiscovercoreFinancial services sponsor supporting hackathon prizes and company expo presence.
- GitHubcoreProvides Best Use of Student Developer Pack prize. Offers GitHub Student Developer Pack to attendees.
- Capital OnecoreCorporate sponsor providing prizes and company representation at events.
- MLH (Major League Hacking)coreHackathon league providing code of conduct, support, and organizational resources. HackIllinois operates under MLH Code of Conduct.
- University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaigncoreParent university providing organizational support, staff coordination, venue access (Siebel Center), and CIF facility for hackathon events.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
HackIllinois competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Hack the North: University of Waterloo's flagship student hackathon. Hack the North is one of the largest and most internationally recognized collegiate hackathons, with a similar free, sponsor-funded, application-based annual model.
- Cal Hacks: UC Berkeley's flagship collegiate hackathon. Cal Hacks operates a similar student-run, corporate-sponsored, free-to-attend annual model and is a direct competitor for tech sponsors and out-of-state student attendees.
- MHacks: University of Michigan's flagship student-run hackathon. MHacks is the most direct Midwest counterpart to HackIllinois, with a comparable model (free admission, corporate-sponsored, annual flagship event) and overlapping applicant and sponsor pools across the Big Ten.
- PennApps: University of Pennsylvania's student-run hackathon and one of the original collegiate hackathons. PennApps is comparable in scale, structure (annual flagship, corporate sponsorships, application-based admission), and prestige tier to HackIllinois.
- HackGT: Georgia Tech's flagship student hackathon. HackGT is comparable in scale, structure, and sponsor profile, and is one of the leading student-run hackathons in the U.S.
- TreeHacks: Stanford's flagship student hackathon. TreeHacks is comparable in prestige, sponsor profile, and participant selectivity, and competes with HackIllinois in the elite-tier collegiate hackathon space.
- BoilerMake: Purdue University's student-run hackathon. As a fellow Big Ten, Midwest-based peer, BoilerMake competes with HackIllinois for regional attendees and Midwest-based corporate sponsors.
- HackMIT: MIT's annual student-run hackathon. HackMIT is a top-tier peer in terms of scale, sponsor prestige, and selectivity, competing with HackIllinois for the same Fortune 500 sponsorship dollars and elite student applicants.
Broad incumbents
- Major League Hacking (MLH): The official student hackathon league that HackIllinois operates under. MLH is the broader incumbent ecosystem that aggregates, supports, and standardizes collegiate hackathons — comparable as the umbrella organization and primary community for events like HackIllinois.
Regional players
- TAMUhack: Texas A&M University's student-run hackathon. TAMUhack is a large-scale collegiate hackathon with a similar corporate-sponsored model, but is more regionally focused in the South/Southwest rather than directly competing for HackIllinois's Midwest applicant base.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
HackIllinois social profiles
Digital presenceHackIllinois financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
HackIllinois leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
HackIllinois funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
HackIllinois M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about HackIllinois
What does HackIllinois do?
HackIllinois is a student-run collegiate hackathon that hosts an annual 36-hour weekend event at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, drawing nearly 1,000 student participants who build innovative projects such as websites and mobile apps to compete for prizes exceeding $75k. The organization supports the event with a custom-built mobile application (iOS/Android), an internal API, and year-specific themed event microsites, and offers specialized competitive tracks (HackKnights, HackOlympians) for experienced hackers.
Is HackIllinois a public or private company?
HackIllinois is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was HackIllinois founded?
HackIllinois was founded in 2013. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is HackIllinois based?
HackIllinois is headquartered in Chicago, United States, in the North America region.
How does HackIllinois make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Corporate Sponsorships are the primary driver. The others are university Support.
Who are HackIllinois's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Hack the North, Cal Hacks, MHacks, PennApps, HackGT, TreeHacks, BoilerMake and HackMIT. Major League Hacking (MLH) is listed as a broad incumbent. TAMUhack is listed as a regional player.
Does HackIllinois have an API?
No public API is recorded for HackIllinois.
What industry is HackIllinois in?
HackIllinois's product category is Collegiate Hackathon Events. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAMACAI, Competitive Programming & Algorithms (DSA, Olympiad-Style), with a secondary code of EDAMAEAA, Competition Coaching & Training Programs (AMC/AIME/USAMO/MathCounts). Its NAICS code is 6114 and its SIC code is 8200.