Our Unforgettable Journey: Winning Innerve 9 Hackathon at AIT Pune

#hackathon #python #react

(This is going to be a very long read! If you're short on time, check out this LinkedIn post for a quick update.)

The Beginning of an Adventure

It all started on the 5th of the month, when our team—Bhuvan M, Mohit Nagaraj, Naman Parlecha, Vivek Agarwal, and I—set out on an unforgettable journey from Bangalore to Pune. We had booked bus tickets, and for me, it was the first time traveling solo to a place I had never been before. The anticipation was high, but so were the challenges.

At the bus station, I almost fell victim to a scam when some strangers tried to ask me for money. Meanwhile, our teammate Bhuvan had a close call—he nearly missed the bus☠️! Just as it was about to leave, he ran and managed to hop on, barely making it in time. The ride itself was grueling; I felt nauseous and restless🤢, unable to sit still for long😭. Eventually, I managed to eat dinner and sleep through most of the 16-hour journey.

When we finally reached Maharashtra, the first thing we ate was Poha🥗—a light and delicious breakfast, which felt perfect for a morning meal. Still exhausted, we dozed off again until we reached Pune, albeit 2 hours behind schedule.

A Warm Welcome at Army Institute of Technology

As soon as we stepped onto the AIT campus, we were greeted with an incredibly warm welcome. The decorations, the enthusiasm of the organizers, and the discipline of the students left a deep impression on me. The respect and courtesy displayed by the students made me emotional🥹—it was a stark contrast to what I was used to.

After a swift check-in, we roamed around the campus before being taken to our hostel. Once settled in, we immediately got to work. The first step was ideation—we scoured through various strategies online and refined our plan for the hackathon⚡. This preliminary groundwork would prove invaluable in helping us execute efficiently the next day.

Dinner time arrived, and the hospitality continued. Volunteers personally escorted us to the canteen, where I had my first-ever experience with mess food. It was simple yet delicious, and we made sure to eat to our hearts’ content ❤️.

Later that night, an unexpected moment of doubt hit us. A random participant approached us and claimed that his team had already built hardware worth ₹6 lakhs☠️. It seemed unfair💔, considering the hackathon rules explicitly stated that everything had to be built within 24 hours. At first, we felt disheartened, fearing that we stood no chance against such resources. ~~However, we later found out that the judges were already aware of the situation.~~ I decided to sleep early, conserving energy for the big day ahead.

The Hackathon Begins!

The next morning, I woke up at 8 AM to the bustling atmosphere of a hostel filled with participants preparing for the challenge. My teammates were still asleep—classic😂! Eventually, only Naman and I made it to the inauguration on time, while the others strolled in later.

With the formalities out of the way, we had breakfast, refueled ourselves, and prepared for battle🔫🪖. The hackathon venue was perfect—the reading area was air-conditioned, and when we requested to move to a quieter spot, the mentors readily agreed🙌. We set up in the back, a comfortable corner where we could focus without distractions.

As soon as the event kicked off, we worked in structured time blocks, setting clear hourly deadlines. The initial hours flew by as we made rapid progress, leveraging our familiarity with the technologies. Before we knew it, lunchtime had arrived, and we were astonished at how four hours had passed in the blink of an eye.

By dinner, most of our components— "both frontend and backend" —were complete. The real challenge now lay in integration. After dinner, we took a short break, enjoying the mesmerizing night sky🌃✨ before heading back into grind mode.

As midnight approached, the number of participants still actively working started to dwindle📉. Many had given in to exhaustion, but we pushed through. Debugging, testing, and integrating our platform was no easy feat🔥. There were moments of frustration when things didn't work, but we persevered, iterating over and over until everything clicked into place🥲.

The Final Stretch and Presentation

By early morning, we had completed our project, but the work wasn’t over yet. Some of our team members crashed from sheer exhaustion, while the rest of us shifted focus to creating our presentation and demo video. Before we knew it, the 10 AM deadline had arrived, and the submissions closed.

At this point, I had intended to do some internship work but ended up dozing off instead😴. When I woke up, I learned that we had been selected for the final presentation round! We hurried downstairs🏃‍♂️💨, where we had the opportunity to showcase our project to the judges. Their reactions were incredible—they were genuinely impressed by our AI-driven multimedia EdTech platform, Synapse💻. It felt amazing to explain our vision to people who truly understood and appreciated its impact🥹.

Connecting with so many brilliant minds at AIT was an unforgettable experience, especially as a first-year student with entrepreneurial ambitions. We had made it to the final round, and the anticipation was at an all-time high.

The Moment of Truth

The prize distribution ceremony began in the evening. Our hearts pounded as we waited for the results😖

The announcement for third place came—it wasn’t us. A wave of uncertainty hit us. We knew from experience that if you don’t place second or third, first place is often a long shot. When second place was announced and it still wasn’t us😔 — we felt a mix of disappointment and acceptance.

Then, the final announcement came 🔥WE WON🔥!

Hearing our team’s name called as the Grand Prize winners was a surreal moment. The flood of emotions—excitement, pride, disbelief—was overwhelming🎉. We walked onto the stage to receive our prize of ₹1.25 Lakh from a senior general, basking in the glory of our hard work and dedication.

A Lasting Memory

That night, we were utterly exhausted. As soon as we returned to our hostel, we collapsed into bed💤, unable to process everything that had happened. The next day, we stayed in Pune to explore the city, taking in its beauty, culture, and energy🥹. It was soo nice to see the city's vibes and people there. It was the perfect way to end such an incredible journey. Loved the entire expirience❤️

Returning home on the 11th morning, I felt a profound sense of happiness and accomplishment. This experience was more than just winning a hackathon—it was about pushing limits, learning, growing, and creating memories that will last a lifetime.

To anyone aspiring to participate in such events, my advice is simple: