Introduction
Rack It Up 2026 is a free, 48 hour online hackathon organised by Rack'Em, the cloud hosting venture of Karma Enterprises, a student founded company from Bengaluru. It runs from 6:00 PM IST on Friday 11 December to 6:00 PM IST on Sunday 13 December 2026.
Teams must build something real in a weekend, deploy it, and have it live on the internet by the final whistle. Submissions require a live deployed link, a public code repository and a demo video of up to three minutes.
Event Overview
Registration is open from 30 October to 9 December 2026, 11:59 PM IST, through Unstop. Teams have one to four members, and solo participants are welcome. Cross college and cross city teams are allowed.
The top ten teams demo live in the finals on Monday 14 December, and results are announced on Tuesday 15 December.
What to Expect
Five themes are published: AI for Everyday India, Student Life and Learning, Local Business and Commerce, Developer Tools and Infra, and Open Innovation. A sixth track covers problem statements from industry sponsors, announced between 2 and 5 December.
All code must be written during the event; open source libraries, frameworks, APIs and AI tools are allowed, but pre built projects are not. Each team may submit one project, and each person can be in only one team. Teams keep full ownership of what they build. Judging is split four ways: working deployed demo 30 percent, impact 25 percent, technical depth 25 percent and presentation 20 percent.
Who Should Attend
The hackathon is open to all developers and students across India, and no student status is required. It suits students building their first deployed project, early career developers who want a live product in their portfolio, and experienced builders who want a focused weekend. Solo builders are welcome.
Key Highlights
- Free to enter, with 1,250 dollars in Adaption credits and three months of Builder access for every participant.
- Cash prizes for the top teams and the best team in each sponsor track, revealed between 2 and 5 December.
- 1,000 dollars in Adaption credits per member for the best use of Adaption.
- Free first year .xyz domains for the winners and top teams, and certificates for every team that submits.
- Unstop goodies for winners; Rack'Em server discounts for all participants.
Agenda and Speakers
There is no speaker programme. The schedule is: registration and team formation, 30 October to 9 December; the hack, 6:00 PM IST on 11 December to 6:00 PM IST on 13 December; finals with live demos from the top ten teams, 14 December; results, 15 December.
Registration Information
Registration is free and takes place only on Unstop. The window closes at 11:59 PM IST on 9 December 2026. Teams of one to four members can register, and participants can find teammates through HackerMate.
Venue and Location
Rack It Up 2026 is an online event, open to participants across India. There is no physical venue. Live mentor hours run on Zoom, and the finals on 14 December are held online with live demos.
Why This Event Matters
Rack It Up's insistence on a live, deployed link changes the incentives: participants leave the weekend with something real on the internet, not just a slide deck.
The free credits, mentor hours and team matching lower the cost of taking part. For students and early career developers, a deployed project is a portfolio piece, not just a certificate.
Event Details
- Event: Rack It Up 2026, 48 hour online hackathon
- Dates: 11 to 13 December 2026
- Time: 6:00 PM IST on 11 December to 6:00 PM IST on 13 December
- Finals: 14 December 2026 (top 10, live demos, online); results 15 December 2026
- Venue: Online (India-wide)
- Organiser: Rack'Em (Karma Enterprises)
- Format: Online
- Price: Free
- Registration deadline: 9 December 2026, 11:59 PM IST
- Team size: 1 to 4 members
Last verified: 13 November 2026.
