
7th Edition
CLOUDFEST
HACKATHON
March 16-18, 2024 | Europa-Park, Germany
For the past six editions, the CloudFest Hackathon has been turning ideas into reality and setting real open-source milestones for existing projects – at lightning speed! Web professionals from across the cloud industry team up to create innovative solutions to nagging tech problems in OSS. Experience the power of the open-source community in action – because it all starts with YOU!
At a Glance
What’s New for 2024?
Increased Efforts for More Diversity
Early Arrival Possible at a Reduced Price
Two Project Mentors
More Attendees
New Application Process
New Social Activities in the Pipeline
Subsequent WordPress Day on Monday
Three Nights in a 4* Europa-Park Hotel
Meet The Winners!
#CFHack23 Champion Award :
Eco-mode – reduce outgoing network traffic of your WordPress server
sponsored by Extendify
Visionary Catalyst Award
Eco-mode – reduce outgoing network traffic of your WordPress server
sponsored by Automattic
Future of The Web Award
Eco-mode – reduce outgoing network traffic of your WordPress server
sponsored by WebPros
Let’s Hack!
Here’s how it went down during the last edition
Hackathon Agenda
SATURDAY
March 16
HACKATHON
»La Scala« at the Colosseo hotel is ready to welcome you!
A warm welcome! Introduction to hackathon objectives and rules
Introduction of the projects—choose which one you want to tackle
Meet your team members & project lead(s) and get your project started
You gotta feed the machine, but you can work through lunch if you prefer
(If you have not checked in yet, this would be a good moment)
Continue the exciting hackathon project collaboration with your team
Food and drinks in the Workshop Room—teams can keep working
Explore Europa-Park’s water world Rulantica and meet your friends from Codeable & Cloudways in the adjacent Panorama Bar.
The number of tickets for the water park is limited to 50 and registration via Mattermost is required.
SUNDAY
March 17
HACKATHON
Are the teams all set? Are there adjustments to be made?
Is there help/support needed from our project mentors or other teams?
Continue working on your awesome weekend project with your team
You gotta feed the machine—but you can work through lunch if you prefer
Continue the exciting hackathon project collaboration with your team
Food and drinks in the workshop room—teams can keep working
Mario Kart tournament, board games & networking.
MONDAY
March 18
HACKATHON
There’s still time to take your project to the next level
Project leads submit their slides for review to the jury in accordance with the event’s guidelines for slides and presentation.
Each team will designate a team member to present the team’s accomplishments achieved during the event.
Announcement of the winners in different categories and closing remarks
We will have one last delicious meal together in a designated area of the Colosseo restaurant.
tba
Rock into the night… under the stars! For the first time ever, we’re taking this party into the streets of Europa-Park 🎉
We Kick Open-Source Projects into High-Gear!
Projects for 2024
The 2023 Hackathon saw a global gathering of web professionals working together on eight different and exciting projects. Again, projects for 2024 will all be not-for-profit, interoperable, and—of course—open-source. These projects will be relevant to the hosting industry, hackable and beneficial for the various professionals who attend CloudFest. To encourage friendly competition between the projects, our jury will determine a winner in different categories.
These Were the Projects for #CFHack23…
Keep an Eye Out for the #CFHack24 Projects!
Goal-Oriented Projects
What outcome is expected for individual projects after three days?
This year, two experienced hackers are assisting our project leads with developing their vision & goals for the hackathon:

Alain Schlesser
Freelancer /
Software Engineer at XWP
Maintainer WP-CLI &
WordPress Core Contributor

Lucas Radke
Freelancer / Product Manager at Automattic – WordPress VIP
Hosting Team Rep in the
WordPress Community
Their help is tremendously valuable in putting the finishing touches on project ideas. 🤝
Would you like to find out more about the projects we’ve been working on during the 2024 edition?
👉 Check out our CloudFest Hackathon 2024 page for more info!
Who Should Attend?
Team up, bring an idea into life, set new milestones to existing projects and release your Hackathon results into the wild!
You will be working with other passionate hackers who are equally excited to make a positive contribution in the #OSS world (starting with GitHub, of course).
Results of the Hackathon will also be showcased to the 7,000+ attendees of CloudFest. Harness the power of open source and make some magic happen!

Attendee Profile
The event is mainly targeted, but not exclusively limited, at Web Developers, Software Engineers, Sys-Admins, Frontend & UX-Designers with the following skills
We are actively striving for a diverse and productive group of participants with different backgrounds, skills, and knowledge to bring about big and positive changes together in the open-source world.
That’s why we also welcome applications from system & infrastructure engineers (DevOps), data scientists, sysadmins, designers, marketers and other web professionals with interest in the Cloud & Hosting industry for our projects.
Diversity and Inclusion
One of the top priorities of the CloudFest Hackathon is to encourage diversity and create a welcoming and safe atmosphere for all. In 2023, we want to further increase our efforts in this regard. This is why we will team up with experts and representatives of underrepresented groups in tech.
We also want to ensure we can meet the needs of our attendees when it comes to dietary requirements and accessibility, in general. That’s why we include related questions in our application process at a later stage.
We expect all our attendees to be considerate, respectful, and collaborative towards each other and to refrain from demeaning, discriminatory, or harassing behavior and speech.
Feel free to reach out to us for questions and suggestions:
hackathon@cloudfest.com


Come Hack with Us!
CloudFest Hackathon takes place the weekend before the main conference at the Colosseo Hotel at Europa-Park Rust in Germany.
From Saturday through Monday afternoon we invite all attendees to support the open-source community with their time and knowledge while we cover all costs:
Three nights in a four-star Europa-Park Hotel (March 18-21) – including full catering & drinks!
The presentation of results will take place during the main event on a CloudFest stage!
You’ll get a free ticket for CloudFest once your application gets selected to attend the CloudFest Hackathon – accommodation after Tuesday will be up to you.
Apply NOW for Your Free Spot
We expect a record number of interested hackers and want to ensure we select a dedicated and diverse group of participants who will take open-source projects to the next level – in the best interest of the participating communities.
For this reason, we have adapted our application process:
Use the form below to apply for an open slot at the event. This is NOT a registration.
We’ll notify you by email if your application is approved, and give you a link to register for CloudFest using a special code. Within moments, you’ll be confirmed for both the 2023 Hackathon and the main festival! 🎉
If you have questions about participating in the CloudFest Hackathon, check out our Hackathon FAQ.
Applications are closed as of January 13, 2023!
If you have a particular interest in participating in a specific project, please reach out to: hackathon@cloudfest.com
Work in the Cloud, But Not a Hacker?
If you don’t want to take part in the Hackathon but do want to attend the main CloudFest event, we invite you to register.










Become a Hackathon Partner!
Friendly Competition at
CloudFest Hackathon 2023
After the great feedback from last year, we want to encourage friendly competition at CloudFest Hackathon again, this year!
Awards
Visionary Catalyst
sponsored by Automattic
For the team that presents the most innovative and visionary project for catalyzing change and creating a more sustainable and open web, and inspires others to join in their vision for a better tomorrow.
Dream Team
sponsored by Codeable
For the team that demonstrates exceptional teamwork, collaboration, and communication throughout the hackathon.
Future Of The Web
sponsored by WebPros
For the team whose project shows the most promise for shaping the future of the web and making a positive impact on the web and society in the long term.
Social Media Master
sponsored by Team “Wapuugotchi“
For the team that creates the most buzz on social media during the hackathon.
Pitch Perfect
sponsored by stella.maris-solutions
For the team that delivers the most compelling and engaging project presentation for all.
#CFHack Champion Award (Overall Winner)
sponsored by Extendify
For the team that hacks their way to the top, emerging as the ultimate #CFHack Champion at the CloudFest Hackathon 2023.

Jury
Lucas Radke (Project mentor & President of the jury)
Alain Schlesser (Project mentor)
Carole Olinger (Head of CloudFest Hackathon)
Sabrina Waltz (Partner, Ionos)
Mike Demo (Partner, Codeable)
Matthieu Tirelli (Volunteer & OS contributor)
Simon Kraft (Volunteer & OS contributor)
Anne-Mieke Bovelett (OS contributor & Accessibility advocate)
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Hack For A Purpose! </>
Rather than focusing solely on recognition, we were actively seeking ways to contribute to a worthy cause in collaboration with our dear partners and supporters.
As such, we are proud to announce that we will be joining CloudFest in supporting the Groundbreaker Talents initiative to fund scholarships for vocational training centers in Uganda that specialize in development and IT education.
This year, we aim to have a lasting impact beyond the hackathon and to support future developers in Uganda in creating a sustainable livelihood for themselves and their local economy, while also contributing to a better open web. Join us!
We are still accepting sponsorships for the open award categories.
(A minimum donation of 500€ is required)
Support us now! Contact: carole@cloudfest.com