Daimler 24-hour Hackathon at the IAA show: sleepless but innovative

September 20, 2017 by Daimler

·DigitalLife Campus exceeded all expectations with the 'Hack.IAA @ me Convention'

·65 digital natives with a wealth of ideas relating to the key topics of 'Artificial Intelligence' and 'Car-2-X Technology'

·The team 'HD Vision deep' received an award for its prototype to optimise mobility solutions using artificial intelligenc

Stuttgart – 'Hackers' with an enthusiasm for programming and an affinity for cars were able to enjoy an IAA show experience of a special kind in Frankfurt. The aim was to help shape the future of mobility from the idea stage to programming and right up to prototyping in 24 hours. In the Daimler hackathon 'Hack.IAA @ me Convention' at the International Motor Show (IAA) on 15. and 16.09.2017, 65 students from nine nations faced the challenge of coming up with innovative ideas and creative prototypes related to the topics of 'Artificial Intelligence (AI)' and 'Car-2-X Technology'. Inspired and surrounded by the product innovations at the show, the participants developed fascinating problem-solving approaches to mobility solutions in the special atmosphere of a 24-hour coding marathon. One of the highlights for the students was the opportunity to pitch their ideas to the visiting public on the smart and Mercedes-Benz stage - moderated by brand ambassador and tech evangelist Guy Kawasaki.

The AI prototype developed by the winning 'HD Vision deep' team registers the urban environment in a simple way, making services such as an overview of available parking spaces possible. The team was rewarded with a visit to the tech start-up event Web Summit in Lisbon. The prototype by the 'Air Key' team would already now be able to unlock a smart by facial recognition. The team 'MCI+Simon' received an award for its chatbox-based vehicle configurator for the Mercedes-Benz X-Class.

Wilko Stark, Head of Daimler & Mercedes-Benz Cars Strategy and Head of CASE, emphasises: 'Intuitive mobility will determine our future. To this end it is particularly relevant to enter into an exchange with young digital talents. I am delighted with the spirit, wealth of ideas and confidence of the students who presented their concepts right there at the IAA show. It is important that we also let our visitors to the show participate in the digital and cultural transformation at Daimler.'

The Hack.IAA @ me Convention is part of the globally successful hackathon series DigitalLife Campus, which started in 2016 with 300 participants and five events on three continents and is organised by the DigitalLife@Daimler team. On a group-wide basis, DigitalLife@Daimler is driving the digital transformation at Daimler forward and implementing projects to bring about digital change. Up until the final event in the current hackathon series at the Mobile World Congress 2018 in Barcelona, further hackathons are planned in Germany and internationally.

This year's Hack.IAA @ me Convention is an official part of the premiere of the international me Convention, an offshoot of the SXSW, the world's largest technology conference, which takes place every year in Austin, Texas. The me Convention offers an open and inspiring platform for creative people from many different fields, the focus being on dialogue, interaction, networking and entertainment. During the entire hackathon, knowledgeable specialists from the Daimler group were available to give advice and support to the teams. During their conversations with them, the hackathon participants were also able to find out about career prospects within the group. In addition to the Cloud platform IBM Bluemix, the participants had access to tools and APIs from smart, moovel and Mercedes-Benz.