This year invites innovators of all backgrounds to create an AI-driven solution to accelerate city climate action.

This means your solution should be:
● Usable at the city-scale
● Addresses a climate challenge
● Evidence-based and AI-driven

All solutions supporting the advancement of the city climate action are welcome and solutions that tackle any of our three priority actions below will receive additional points:

● Transportation: Advancing sustainable and accessible mobility systems to reduce emissions and improve connectivity.
● Informal or Marginalized Settlements: Integrating underserved communities through inclusive urban planning and service delivery.
● Misinformation and Disinformation: Combatting disinformation (i.e. deliberately spreading false information to manipulate opinions and actions) and misinformation (i.e. false information spread without malicious intent but that can still be harmful) to safeguard climate literacy and public trust.

The AI x CCA Hackathon 2026 roadmap provides more opportunities than ever to take your AI innovation from a spark of idea to real-world climate impact. Spanning three countries, each phase of this year’s journey offers unique activities to engage with a global ecosystem of city leaders, researchers, and tech pioneers. Explore how our multi-phase framework below to see how you can join this journey and turn your vision into measurable climate action.

❗ First things first – please register for the Hackathon using the Registration Form or through I4C26. All members of the team must have completed the registration form in order for your submission to be eligible.

IDEATE

🇰🇪 Attend the launch live at the I4C26 Conference in-person or online by registering for I4C26. Find out more about the AI x CCA Hackathon events at I4C26 here.

💡 OPTIONAL ACTIVITY: Attending I4C26? Take your participation a step further by joining our exclusive Ideation Sprint, a hands-on opportunity to brainstorm before the hacking begins. Winners stand a chance to be fast-tracked to the Finale in Cambridge. Sign up for the Ideation Sprint at I4C26 here by 28 May 2026!

📺 Watch the session recording later at your convenience if you can’t make it live. Be sure to register for the Hackathon to get all the latest updates!

HACK

👩🏻‍💻 Join our live webinars to find out more about the themes, key resources, and get insights directly from our experts.

📥 Submit your solution by the 31st of August, 2026 at 11.59pm GMT.

🇬🇧 Selected finalists will pitch their solution in September either online or in-person at our Finale at the University of Cambridge in partnership with the Center for Human-Inspired AI (CHIA).

PILOT

🇪🇸 Selected winners of the AI x City Climate Action Hackathon 2026 will receive support to attend the Urban Transitions Mission (UTM) Global Innovation Summit “Accelerating Urban Transitions: Scaling Impact with AI and Digital Innovation” on Nov 3rd at Viladecans, Spain in-person and to further develop their solution.

🏙️ Winners may also be paired with a city in collaboration with the Urban Transitions Mission to explore a pilot implementation of their solution on the ground.

The hackathon is open to all backgrounds including students, professionals, and any other combination.

All participants must be 18 years of age or older, and must have registered to the Hackathon using the Registration Form above or through I4C26 to be considered eligible.

Participants will then have until the 31st of August, 2026 at 11.59pm GMT to submit their solution.

Participants must develop a methodology to tackle the challenge statement that must be demonstrated totally or partially by an AI application, by using geospatial tools or data, through dashboards or other data science applications or by providing case studies.

For more details, please see the participation terms and conditions here.

Participants will be asked to submit via the form in the “Are you ready to submit” section below:
● Name of solution
● City climate focus areas related to solution (e.g. Urban transportation)
● Short Description (200 characters max)
● Concept: A slide presentation of 20 pages/slides max (in PDF format) explaining the solution including the city climate problem being addressed, the idea and how it solves the issue, the functionality / methodology / process flow of the solution, the target user or community, the expected real-world benefits and the unique innovation or selling point of the solution.
● Demonstration: A showcase of your AI-driven solution (or a fragment of it) being applied as an application, a dashboard, or any other suitable format. This may be (but not limited to) case studies or visualizations in a PDF, or a video / screen recording of your demo, If there are any additional links (e.g. websites or an app we can interact with, code repositories), please include them in your submission materials when completing the form.
● Pilot Plan: An overview of your plan for the pilot period should you win the Hackathon. This would include a brief description of your activities and timeline and your team structure. You can find a sample pilot plan here.

Our jury of experts will be assessing submissions based on the following key areas:

● Relevance: We are looking for solutions that are relevant at the city-scale, contributes to addressing climate change, are evidence-based and AI-driven, Solutions that meaningfully tackle one or more of our three focus areas will receive bonus points.

● Innovative: We are looking for originality and creativity, whether solutions introduce new ideas or approaches and how it differentiates itself from existing solutions. Tip – bring in specific insights from your knowledge and lived experiences of a city!

● Impactful: We are looking for concrete positive outcomes for enhancing climate action in cities, so be sure to explicitly state the potential of your solution. Tip – be specific about the city climate challenge you are addressing, as well as how and to whom your solution provides tangible benefits.

● Presentation: We are looking for clear and effective communication, so clearly explain the purpose, functionality and benefits of your solution. Well-organized, neatly formatted materials with engaging and appealing visuals will also make your submission stand out from the rest. Don’t overcomplicate things and opt for communicating complex ideas in simple and easily understandable language.

● Feasibility: We are looking for practical solutions that can be implemented on the ground. Make sure your pilot plan is logical and manageable within the 6-month timeline for winners, and that your team capacity and skills match the needs.

● Viability: We are looking for a proof of concept through a full or partial demonstration of your solution. This can be a demo app, a UI/UX prototype, a dashboard, case studies of your tool, visualizations, a screen recording – whichever the format, we’d love to see how your tool actually looks and works.

Bonus points will be given to solutions that directly address our priority actions: Transportation, Informal / Marginalized Settlements, and/or Misinformation / Disinformation.

Want to sharpen your project and connect with experts? Lock in these dates!
All webinars run at 3pm CET | Webinar Recording Passcode: AIxCCA@2026

WEBINAR 1
• July 22nd | Hackathon Sync | Watch Webinar 1 here
Missed our launch at I4C26? Get up to speed with a full breakdown of the challenge, rules, and prizes.

WEBINAR 2
•  August 5th | Hackathon Deep Dive | Watch Webinar 2 here
Hear directly from our partners and experts on how to successfully tackle this year’s theme and priority actions.

WEBINAR 3
• August 19th | Hackathon Office Hours | Watch Webinar 3 here
Grab this last chance to chat directly with expert mentors and polish your project before the submission deadline.

Already registered for the 2026 AI x City Hackathon?
You are automatically added to the webinars if you have signed up using our registration form or through I4C26. The webinar access details will be sent straight to your inbox!
Please check your ‘Spam’ folder if you do not see the email. If you still did not receive the webinar information 1 week after your registration, please sign up here to secure your spot.

PARTICIPATION

🏅 Certificate of Participation for participants that meet all the submission guidelines.

I4C26 EXCLUSIVE: IDEATION SPRINT PRIZE

⏩ Winners of the Ideation Sprint at I4C26 will be fast-tracked to the grand Finale at Cambridge with CHIA in September 2026, provided they complete a full submission to the Hackathon by August 31st.

MAIN PRIZE

📢 Opportunity for up to 10 finalists to pitch their solutions at the University of Cambridge online or in-person.

🇪🇸 Travel and accommodation support for a representative from the top three teams to attend the Urban Transitions Mission (UTM) Global Innovation Summit in Spain.

⭐ Receive expert support to further develop and refine your climate solutions.

🏙️ If the proposed solution of the winners would benefit from working closely with a city, we commit to identifying a city to be paired with to explore implementation on the ground, delivered with the Urban Transitions Mission.

For more information, please see the participation terms and conditions here.

Looking for more resources?

Together with our partners, we’ve gathered all the data, tools, and insights you need to take your idea from a concept to a winning, climate-resilient solution. Check them out in our participant hub below.