MLH Hackcon: Keynote (2024)

How will the future of AI impact what it means to be a developer? How is Major League Hacking (MLH) supporting the organizers and hackers in our community in the year ahead?

Transcript

1. The State of the League. 2025 Season By: @theycallmeswift
2. Hey, there! I’m Swift. CEO & Co-Founder of MLH Aspiring lawyer turned hacker Empowering hackers for 10+ years
3. You can’t learn the skills to become a software engineer in a classroom.
5. of hackers say that joining this community changed their lives & they would not be here without it. 48%
6. This is one of the most difficult times in modern history to start a career in tech.
7. Source: layoffs.fyi
8. Everyone should not learn how to program. In fact, it’s almost exactly the opposite. It is our job to create computing technology such that nobody has to program. Jensen Huang CEO, NVIDIA
9. BRIGHT OUR FUTURE IS
10. Wait, why are there so many student hackathons anyway? Image Source: ChatGPT :)
11. Image Source: Wikipedia
12. of hackers are learning skills through the MLH community they can’t learn in class. 91%
13. WIN Sponsors WIN Hackers
14. Today 1 in 3 Computer Science graduates in the USA are already MLH Community Members.
15. Hackers Empowered & Lives Changed! 1, 000, 000+
16. The future of the tech industry should be written by the people in this room, not some investors in Silicon Valley.
17. Back in 2013, only 1 in 5 Computer Science students identified as non-male.
18. This was a community-wide, concerted effort. Here’s the strategy we used: Partnership Support the existing communities for underrepresented hackers. 2 Story Telling Create aspirational pathways by highlighting diverse stories. 3 Leadership 1 Define the best practices for safe & welcoming events.
19. There was a time when no hackathons had a code of conduct. We changed that.
22. of MLH Community Members last year identified as non-male in the USA & Canada. 49%
23. How do these lessons apply to these unprecedented challenges?
24. Generative AI’s impact on computing has been meteoric. Image Source: ChatGPT :)
25. More than 90% of hackers are already using AI coding tools:
26. The primary function of a software engineer is transitioning from creation to editorial.
27. Write the Rules ✍ Step #1:
28. Going to your first hackathon can be quite scary. Image Source: ChatGPT :)
29. of hackers who didn’t submit a project either got stuck or couldn’t finish in time. 42%
30. Where could we use AI to reimagine the hackathon experience? 🤔 1. Team Formation 2. Project Ideation 3. Mentorship & Feedback 4. Demo/Pitch Practice 5. Professional Networking 6. Fun & Mini-Events 7. In-Event Support 8. Judging & Evaluation
31. Craft the Hacker Experience 🎨 Step #2:
32. If the only story you ever hear is that AI is taking away jobs, obviously you’re going to believe it. Image Source: ChatGPT :)
33. GitHub Copilot improved outcomes & increased developer productivity by 55%. Source: GitHub Research (https://github.blog/)
34. Instead, let’s talk about how AI gives developers superpowers. Image Source: ChatGPT :)
35. You can start doing this at your hackathons immediately: Workshops Content Incentives
36. Tell the New Hacker Story 📣 Step #3:
37. MLH Alumni introduced technology they learned at a hackathon into production at their job. 45%
38. 1. Write the Rules ✍ 2. Craft the Hacker Experience 🎨 3. Tell the New Hacker Story 📣 Let’s Summarize our Strategy:
39. Siddharth Shivkumar siddharth@mlh.io We’re Here To Help. Chat with your local MLH Hackathon Community Manager for advice, resources, connections, & more! Christine Kim christine.kim@mlh.io Maria Dunning maria@mlh.io
40. Quick! Let’s announce ALL THE THINGS MLH is doing this year!
41. v4.0 is coming this Fall
42. Quickly collect detailed, standardized hacker registration data.
43. Hackers can share their data with organizers in a single click.
44. Here’s a sneak preview of the new MLH Hacker Profile.
48. MLH’s 2025 Hackathon Season Schedule is LIVE! The first 60+ hackathons this season are already on the MLH website. Apply now to add your event to the schedule: mlh.io/event-membership
49. Thank you & Happy Hacking. Mike “Swift” Swift CEO & Co-founder @ MLH swift@mlh.io | theycallmeswift.dev Slides Available After Talk: speakerdeck.com/theycallmeswift