AI for Pakistan’s Future
The Alibaba Cloud AI Hackathon Pakistan 2026, delivered in Pakistan by Bano Qabil Pakistan, Cognix Solutions and Alibaba Cloud. Teams across the country are building working AI products for problems that matter here.
Registration and training are complete. The build phase is running now.
Portal access details are shared separately with each team.
What this programme is
The AI Hackathon 2026 is a national competition for young builders in Pakistan. It is not a weekend sprint. Teams are taken through structured training, a mentored build phase and a staged evaluation, so that what comes out at the end is a working product rather than a slide.
Participation is free. The development tools and the guidance are provided, because access has always been the barrier here, not ability.
Built, not pitched
Teams ship something that runs. Judges look at the problem being solved, the use of AI and whether the solution can survive outside a demo.
Guided the whole way
Training before the build, mentors during it, and a consistent evaluation standard applied to every project.
Open to first-time builders
Advanced AI experience is not required. Effort and thinking decide the outcome.
The theme
Every project is expected to point at a real need in the country. The strongest work in this programme tends to come from teams who have lived close to the problem they picked.
Focus areas
Teams register under one focus area and may build across others where it makes sense.
Smart Agriculture
Yield, pest and irrigation support for the sector that employs the largest share of the workforce.
Financial Inclusion
Credit, payments, fraud and voice-first access for people the formal system has not reached.
Urdu & Regional Language Tech
Speech, text and translation work for Urdu, Sindhi, Pashto and Punjabi, which mainstream AI serves poorly.
Healthcare
Triage, imaging support and remote diagnostics for places where specialists are scarce.
Education
Tutoring, assessment and low bandwidth delivery for classrooms under strain.
Open Innovation
Any other AI-powered idea that does not fit neatly in the areas above.
Programme timeline
The build phase has been extended after feedback from the training sessions, so every team has the time to develop its project properly.
Anything not yet dated is announced directly to teams.
- Registration8 July to 7 AugustComplete
- Onboarding and trainingMid AugustComplete
- Tools access dispatch24 and 25 AugustComplete. Qoder access sent to eligible teams following acknowledgement, with your current position under the Alibaba Cloud evaluation criteria
- Build phaseTo 7 SeptemberLive now
- Submission portalDuring the build phaseTo be announced. Details shared separately
- Regional technical evaluationAfter 7 SeptemberTo be announced
- Regional round eventsTo be announcedVenue and time shared separately
- Finalist preparationTo be announcedTo be announced
- Grand finaleTo be announcedTo be announced
Dates after the build phase are confirmed by email and on this page as they are set.
What taking part gives you
Technical training
Structured, hands-on preparation before the build, in the Bano Qabil tradition of free practical education.
Mentorship
Guidance from experienced AI practitioners, applied to your project and not to a generic curriculum.
AI development tooling
Qoder, the Alibaba Cloud AI development tool, dispatched to eligible teams at no cost, along with the development resources that go with it.
Recognition that travels
Certification for participants who complete the programme, issued by Bano Qabil, and visibility for the strongest teams in front of industry and international partners.
Hosted under Alkhidmat Foundation Pakistan.
Delivered together
Ready to submit your project?
The submission portal is where your team uploads its work for evaluation. Sign in with the email address your team registered with. One account exists per project and it is held by the team lead — the submission is recorded against the project, not the person who uploaded it.
Submissions are open until 7 Sep 2026, 11:59 pm PKT.
Access details not received? Write to us from your registered address.
Where announcements come from
Your registered email address, and this page. Once you are signed in, announcements also appear on your dashboard, and Queries is where you ask something directly. The hackathon Discord channel carries them too.
Questions
Students, graduates, developers, designers, researchers and early-stage teams from across Pakistan.
Registration for the 2026 edition closed on 7 August. Qualified teams were notified by email; there is no public sign-up.
No. Entry is free and the tooling is provided.
Qoder access was dispatched to eligible teams after acknowledgement. If you expected it and it has not reached you, write to aihackathon@banoqabil.pk from your registered email address and we will check your team's status.
During the build phase. The link and the sign-in details are sent to your team directly.
Your team lead holds the account. Only one account exists per project, and the submission is recorded against the project rather than the person who uploaded it.
Your registered email address, and this page. Once you are signed in, announcements also appear on your dashboard, and Queries is the place to ask something directly.