MidwestCon 2026Theanna x GoalGetters.aiFriday, September 11

Buildathon Run Sheet

Four and a quarter hours, three tracks, one rule that decides most of it: if it is not deployed, it is not judged.

Date: Friday, September 11
Hours: 10:45 AM to 3:00 PM ET
Where: 1819 Innovation Hub, Cincinnati, plus Zoom
Hosts: Nomiki Petrolla, Kaila Love
Build tool: Replit
Judged on: 25 points, four judges

Where you compete

Three tracks

Declared at team lock, one per team. The examples are the scope: anything roughly this size is finishable in the build window by a small team.

Creative

Tools for artists, makers, and the people who book them.

A one-page press kit an artist fills in once and shares everywhere
A merch or release drop page with email capture
A booking request form that writes the reply back to the venue

Civic

Tools for neighborhoods, nonprofits, and public services.

A volunteer shift sheet a coordinator can send in one link
A plain-language walkthrough that turns a city form into steps
A local resource finder for one specific need in one specific zip code

Entrepreneurship

Tools that help a small business get paid or get found.

A waitlist page with a qualifying quiz that sorts the leads
A quote calculator for a service business
A client intake form that drafts the follow-up email

Who competes

Teams first, nobody turned away

Teams collaborate better, build more in two hours and cut the pitch block in half. Solo builders still get in, and are scored on the same rubric.

2 to 4

Team size

The encouraged shape. Teams build more in two hours and pitch first.

Solo is allowed

A solo builder competes in their track alongside teams, scored on the same rubric.

11:45

Team lock

Rosters and tracks are fixed at 11:45. No switching once the build window opens.

Rooms, one rubric

Onsite and Zoom builders are scored identically and pitch in one alternating order.

What you win

Recognition, not one winner

Five winners across three tracks, not one.

Grand prize

A seat in the September 29 Theanna accelerator cohort

Highest total score across all three tracks.

Track winner

Medal and certificate, one per track

One per track, three winners.

Side award

Crowd Favorite

Voted by the room and the Zoom while the judges score.

All times ET

Run of show

Built to MidwestCon's published agenda, which lists the Buildathon at 10:45 AM to 3:00 PM and the Reveal at 2:30 to 3:00. Nothing below moves those two anchors.

10:45
5 min
Doors, welcome, why we are here
Room and Zoom join together. The frame for the day and the prize ladder.
Nomiki
10:50
10 min
The challenge, the rules, the tracks
The rubric read out loud, the three tracks walked with their examples, the deadlines named.
Kaila
11:00
45 min
Replit session
Replit teaches the tool live to the room and the Zoom, then stays in the Zoom for the whole build window to unblock people.
Replit
11:45
10 min
Team lock and track declaration
Teams form, name themselves, pick one track, and drop it in the submission form.
Nomiki
11:55
2 hr 20
One continuous build
Heads down, lunch at the machines. Hosts float the room, Replit answers in the Zoom, judges ask their questions here rather than at the pitch. Time checks at 1:00, 1:30 and 2:00.
All
2:15
hard stop
Submissions close
The form locks. Live URL required. Anything after this is not judged.
Deadline
2:15
15 min
Judge triage
Judges open every link and confirm it loads, and score everything except the demo. Pitch order posted, alternating onsite and virtual.
Judges
2:30
20 min
The Reveal, part one: teams show what they built
90 seconds each, live demo on screen, no Q and A. Timer visible to the room, mic cuts at 90.
Kaila
2:50
10 min
The Reveal, part two: winners named
Track winners, Crowd Favorite, grand prize. Then the group photo and where to keep building.
Nomiki, Kaila

If more than 10 teams submit

Twenty minutes holds ten pitches at 90 seconds. Past that, judges shortlist eight off the submissions during triage, the shortlist pitches, and everyone else demos in a gallery walk while the room votes.

Submission form, seven fields

Team name, members, track, one-line problem, who it is for, live URL, Replit project link. Nothing else. Opens at team lock, locks itself at 2:15.

Read aloud at 10:50

Rules

Build newCode starts at the 11:55 bell. No pre-written code, no project you started last week.
Bring the thinkingIdeas, research, customer notes, wireframes and brand assets from before today are allowed and encouraged. The weeks of prep are the point.
Use ReplitThe build happens in Replit. AI assistance is expected, not penalized.
TeamsTwo to four people. Solo entries are accepted and compete in their track alongside teams.
One trackDeclared at team lock. No switching after 11:55.
Must deployA public URL a judge can open on their own phone. A local preview or a screen recording does not count and scores zero on Shipped.
No installsNothing that asks a judge to sign up, download or configure anything to see it work.
2:15 is finalThe form locks. Late submissions are not judged.

25 points, four judges

Judging

Criterion	What the judge is looking for	Points
Shipped	The link opens and a stranger can use it without a walkthrough. Zero here is a zero overall, no matter how good the idea.	5
Problem and ICP	Who it is for in one sentence, and what breaks for them today.	5
Live demo	You showed the real thing, working, on the first try. Not slides.	5
Feasibility	This could keep running past today. It is built on something real.	5
Track fit and originality	It answers the track it declared, and it is not the obvious thing.	5
Total	Ties break on Shipped, then on Problem and ICP.	25

Pitch format

90 seconds, live demo required, no Q and A. The Reveal block is 30 minutes and has to hold the awards too, so judges ask their questions during the build window instead. Slides are optional and never a substitute for the demo.

How scoring runs

Four judges score everything except the demo during triage, add the demo score live, and the totals sum on one sheet so the winners are ready the moment the last pitch ends.

Reserve your spot