Bobathon: Building Solutions for Bengaluru with IBM Bob

Technology is at its best when it solves problems people experience every day.

That's the idea behind IBM Bobathon, a hackathon focused on turning local challenges into practical, usable solutions for Bengaluru. Rather than building projects in isolation, participants are encouraged to identify real problems, collaborate with others, and create solutions that can make a tangible impact on communities using IBM Bob as their development partner.

What makes Bobathon particularly interesting is its focus on outcomes rather than technology alone. Participants aren't just asked to build something innovative. They're challenged to create something useful, relevant, and meaningful for the people who live and work in Bengaluru.

Solving Real Problems, Not Hypothetical Ones

Cities face countless challenges that affect daily life. From mobility and public services to accessibility, employment opportunities, and community engagement, there are many areas where technology can make a difference.

Bobathon encourages participants to tackle these issues through four challenge tracks:

1. Agentic AI for Civic Challenges

How can agentic AI help solve Bengaluru's everyday challenges?

This track focuses on applying AI to improve how citizens interact with services, access information, and navigate urban environments. Participants can explore ideas that improve efficiency, accessibility, and responsiveness across city systems.

2. Expanding Employment and Community Impact

Technology has the potential to connect people with opportunities and help community initiatives reach larger audiences.

This track focuses on solutions that improve access to employment, skill development, volunteering opportunities, and community programs.

3. Building Safer and More Inclusive Communities

A city works best when everyone can participate.

Participants are encouraged to create solutions that improve safety, accessibility, and inclusion for:

• Children
• Women
• Senior citizens
• People with disabilities

The goal is to use technology to help make everyday life easier, safer, and more accessible.

4. Student Innovation Track

Students are encouraged to start with a problem they personally see and experience.

Instead of working from predefined challenges, participants can identify issues affecting their school, neighborhood, campus, or community and develop solutions that address those needs directly.

Build with IBM Bob

Throughout the event, participants can use IBM Bob to help accelerate development, explore ideas, prototype solutions, and move from concept to implementation faster.

Whether it's designing architectures, generating code, planning workflows, validating solutions, or modernizing existing implementations, Bob can help builders focus more on solving problems and less on repetitive development tasks.

Exciting Prizes

In addition to the opportunity to create meaningful solutions, participants can compete for a range of prizes:

🏆 1st Prize – iPads

🥈 2nd Prize – AirPods

🥉 3rd Prize – Logitech Mice

⭐ Student Innovation Award – JBL Speakers

But beyond the prizes, the real opportunity is building something that could positively impact how people experience life in Bengaluru.

Why Events Like Bobathon Matter

Hackathons are often associated with rapid prototyping and experimentation. What makes Bobathon unique is its focus on local relevance.

The challenge isn't simply to build the most technically impressive application.

The challenge is to build something Bengaluru can actually feel.

Whether that's reducing friction in daily life, supporting underserved communities, improving access to opportunities, or creating safer experiences, the emphasis is on practical impact.

As agentic AI tools become more capable, events like Bobathon create opportunities for developers, students, designers, entrepreneurs, and problem-solvers to combine technology with community-driven innovation.

Get Involved

If you have an idea, a problem you want to solve, or simply want to explore what can be built with agentic AI, Bobathon offers a great opportunity to collaborate with others and turn concepts into working solutions.

🚀 Participate in Bobathon:
👉 Register Here

🤖 Learn more about IBM Bob:
👉 Explore IBM Bob