ORION 1.0 — 24-Hour National Level Hackathon in Chennai: Code. Innovate.Build the Future.

• Round 1 (online): submit your PPT on or before 21 September 2026 — you can take part from anywhere in India.
• Grand Finale (offline, Top 70 teams): 9–10 October 2026 (tentative) at Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology, Jeppiaar Nagar, Rajiv Gandhi Salai (OMR), Chennai - 600119.

Click "Register Your Team — ₹100" on this website to open the official registration form. Fill in your team details, pay the flat ₹100 Round 1 fee for the whole team, and submit your PPT made with the official ORION 1.0 template before 21 September 2026.

Round 1 has four tracks:

• FloatChat (ORION-PS-01) — AI-powered natural-language query engine and 4D visualization for ARGO ocean data.
• LexVault (ORION-PS-02) — zero-knowledge, blockchain-powered evidence vault for legal chains of custody.
• SylvaSense (ORION-PS-03) — tree enumeration and biomass estimation from multi-spectral and SAR satellite imagery.
• Open Innovation & Student Innovation Projects — your own idea in AI, Web3, cybersecurity or hardware (Round 1 only).

Open the Challenge Arena on this page for the full brief of each track.

ORION 1.0 is organized by Microsoft Club SIST, the student technology community of Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai, under the patronage of the university's leadership and the School of Computing. Organizer contacts are listed in the Patrons & Organizers section of this page.

Yes. ORION 1.0 is open to all college students — undergraduate, postgraduate and PhD, from any year and any department — as well as early-career working professionals. Mixed teams across colleges, departments and years are welcome.

Submissions are scored by the jury on four criteria:

• Technical Innovation & Novelty — 30%
• System Architecture & Engineering Depth — 30%
• Feasibility & Real-World Impact — 20%
• Presentation, Pitch & Live Defense — 20%

Following the official PPT template exactly is mandatory; the Top 70 teams move on to the Grand Finale.

Yes. Every participating team member receives an individual certificate of participation. Winners also receive Certificates of Merit and trophies at the Valedictory Ceremony at the end of the 24-hour Grand Finale.

The official template is available as a free download in the Guidelines section of this website (ORION_1.0_Template.pptx). Only this template is accepted — do not add, remove or reorder slides, and name your file TeamName_ORION1.0.

Join the official WhatsApp announcement group shared after registration and follow @orion1.0_ on Instagram for shortlist and schedule updates. For anything else, email orion.microsoftclub@gmail.com or ask ORION AI, the assistant on this website.

ORION 1.0 is open to all college students (undergraduate, postgraduate, PhD) and early-career working professionals across India. Cross-institutional, cross-department, and multidisciplinary teams are enthusiastically welcome!

Each team must have a minimum of 2 and a maximum of 6 members (1 Team Leader + 1 to 5 Team Members). Individual solo participation is strictly not permitted. Cross-college, cross-department, and cross-year teams are fully allowed.

Yes! Cross-college, cross-department, and cross-year teams are completely permitted. All participating team members will receive individual certificates of participation.

Each team must submit an idea abstract and a pitch deck (PPT), prepared using the official ORION 1.0 template, through the Google Form / Team Portal on or before 21 September 2026. Only the prescribed template will be accepted — using any other format leads to disqualification.

No. Round 1 only requires the PPT submission. No prototype, code, or video is needed at this stage — you are simply pitching your idea on slides. Demo videos are optionally accepted; if you wish to include one, upload it via the dedicated demo video Drive link shared in the official announcement group.

Yes, demo videos are accepted. You can upload your demo video using the dedicated demo video Drive link provided in the official announcement group. The PPT is the mandatory submission — the demo video is optional.

They are submitted separately using two different links shared in the official announcement group:

• PPT → upload via the dedicated PPT Drive link
• Demo video → upload via the dedicated demo video Drive link

Please do not combine them into a single folder — use the respective link for each file.

Yes — upload them separately. There are two separate Drive links shared in the announcement group: one dedicated link for the PPT and a separate link for the demo video. Please do not combine them into a single folder — use the respective link for each file.

Google Form entries cannot be edited once submitted. In this case, simply upload the newer PPT to the shared Google Drive link provided by the organizers in the official announcement group. You do not need to fill the form again — the Drive upload alone is sufficient to update your submission.

If the originally shared submission link isn't working, a new/updated link has been posted in the official announcement group. Please check the announcement group and use that link to complete your submission.

Strict Rule: Only a maximum of 10% AI assistance is permitted in your PPT submission, strictly restricted to light grammar checks, spelling corrections, or proofreading. At least 90% of your deck — including your idea, problem formulation, solution architecture, technical diagrams, workflows, and implementation feasibility — must be 100% human-crafted and originally engineered by your squad. Automated screening tools and jury scrutiny will evaluate submissions for synthetic AI content. Decks detected with heavy AI generation will face severe point deductions or outright disqualification.

No. Strict rules: No slides may be added, removed, or reordered. Branding, headers, and footers must remain intact. Additionally, only up to 10% AI assistance is allowed (for grammar/formatting touch-ups only). The Team ID field on the PPT must be left blank (it will be filled in by the organizing team). Submissions must be named strictly as: TeamName_ORION1.0 (PPTX or PDF).

Yes, but only for Round 1. Teams without a flagship track idea can propose their own Open Innovation or Student Innovation project. However, this option is not available in the Grand Finale — every finalist team will instead work on a problem statement assigned on the spot at the venue.

Round 1 (online): ₹100, flat per team, regardless of team size. This covers the entire squad (2–6 members), not per member. Grand Finale (only for shortlisted teams): ₹250 per head — charged individually for each finalist team member, not per team.

No. All fees are strictly non-refundable and non-transferable, regardless of the reason — including withdrawal, non-attendance, travel issues, academic commitments, or team disputes. Fees also cannot be adjusted or transferred to another team.

The Top 70 teams, selected through jury evaluation of Round 1 submissions (based on innovation, feasibility, technical depth, and template compliance), will advance to the 24-hour offline Grand Finale.

All shortlisted teams receive their problem statements on the spot at the start of the 24-hour offline sprint at SIST Chennai (Grand Finale: 9–10 October 2026, tentative). Teams must build their solution on the problem statement assigned during the event. Open Innovation is not available in the final round.

• Registration closes: 21 September 2026
• Round 1 (online idea submission): on or before 21 September 2026
• Top 70 Shortlist Announcement: Announcing Soon
• Grand Finale (offline): 9–10 October 2026 (tentative), at Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai.

Please watch the official WhatsApp community and Instagram page for the Top 70 shortlist and the final confirmation of the Grand Finale dates.

The total prize pool of ₹1,00,000 (including ₹25k 1st Place Champion, ₹15k 1st Runner-Up, ₹10k 2nd Runner-Up, and Special Track Bounties) along with Certificates of Merit and trophies will be awarded physically during the Valedictory Ceremony immediately concluding the 24-hour sprint.

Yes. Free on-campus hostel accommodation is provided for outstation finalist teams. Meals include 2 breakfasts, 2 lunches, dinner, and midnight snacks. High-speed Wi-Fi, power backup, and air-conditioned workspaces are also provided throughout the 24-hour event.

The 24-hour offline sprint takes place at the School of Computing Complex, Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology, Jeppiaar Nagar, Rajiv Gandhi Salai (OMR), Chennai - 600119. The campus is ~22 km from Chennai International Airport (MAA) and ~25 km from Chennai Central (MAS) / Tambaram Railway Station with direct bus and cab connectivity.

Participants have access to 24/7 uninterrupted power backup, dedicated power sockets at every team station, high-speed dual-band Wi-Fi and LAN mesh networks, mentor breakout zones, and round-the-clock medical and technical support.

Every participant must carry their official College/University ID card (or valid government photo ID) along with their digital ORION 1.0 Finalist Invitation Dossier for security check-in at the main campus gate.

No. Once participants enter the campus, they must remain inside until the event concludes and the organizers permit departure. Leaving during the event is not allowed.

No. Food and snack deliveries through services such as Blinkit, Swiggy, and Instamart, or any other external delivery service, are not permitted inside the university campus.

Yes. Participants may bring packed food and snacks. These must be consumed outside the event venue, within the campus, only during designated breaks or at times permitted by the organizers.

No. Eating food or snacks inside the event venue is strictly prohibited.

No. Changes, substitutions, or swapping of team members on the event day are not permitted. Participants must attend with their registered team.

No. All payments are strictly non-refundable.

No. Fees cannot be transferred, adjusted, or exchanged between teams.

No. The Round 1 registration fee will not be refunded if a team does not qualify for the finals.