Turku Future Hackathon
The City of Turku offered an opportunity to conceptualise and implement applications that benefit the people and organizations of the Turku campus and science park. 16 teams and tens of people accepted the challenge and participated in the competition with a main prize of 8000€. Gispo Ltd. was brought in by Turku Science Park Ltd. to assist and spar the teams. The hackathon was held over the weekend 29.9.-1.10.2017. The longer term goal of the project is to develop the Turku science park area into a vibrant district.
OPEN DATA, 3D CITY MODELING AND AN IOT-PLATFORM
The teams had access to various open datasets, including public transit and event data. The City of Turku also provided access to geospatial data APIs and the 3D model of Turku. Teams were also offered access to the Sova3D web platform and the Elisa IoT platform. As the data used is open, the used datasets are still freely available for viewing and use. A Mapillary capture session, led by Janne Mustonen from the City of Turku, was organized during the hackathon weekend. Gispo has added captured images of the area to Mapillary.
Winning teams
The judges eventually ended up with two winners: Go Questing and TwinCities. The members of the second winning team didn’t know each other before the hackathon, making their achievement even greater. Both teams won 4000€ and got the chance to pitch their ideas at the opening of the Turku Visitor and Innovation Centre in December 2017.
Gispo’s role
The hackathon was hosted and scheduled by Sanna Jokela from Gispo Ltd, while Erno Mäkinen helped the teams utilize open data and the technical platforms. Experts from Elisa, the City of Turku, Regional Council of Southwest Finland and Turku Science Park also guided the teams.
“The Turku Future Hackathon was a successful trial of a new operating model, in which practical work is done directly with partners. The facilitation and success of such events is of primary priority, and Gispo Ltd. has succeeded marvelously.”, says specialist Janne Mustonen from the City of Turku.
“In hackathons, the organizer has a major responsibility in ensuring the event progresses smoothly and there’s a good athmosphere. Sanna handled the event all through the weekend and gave positive energy to competitors and organizers alike. Well done!” -Kalle Luhtinen, Turku Science Park Ltd.
Check out the slideshows and pitches of each team.
