Save the world with code: hacking the 2030 SDG’s at hatch, London!

Le Wagon sponsored the hatch hackathon at the Ministry of Justice. The 2 day event aimed to bring together diverse groups of students to work together in teams, solving problems and pitching solutions to the UN’s 2030 sustainable goals. Goals ranged from vision loss to sexual harassment, improving politics and climate change.

We were welcomed by Kim Rowan, Head of Engineering from the Ministry of Justice and Paul Shepheard from Deutsche Bank, introducing the mindset needed to approach the challenge! There were 8 different sprints (1-6 on the Saturday, 7-8 on the Sunday) that were lead by the Sprint Master, who also directed mentors to the teams with relevant needs to match their experience. Le Wagoners were there to help the teams crack their code to build their MVPs (prototypes). But first, they had to get to the idea…with help from MOO.com. 

Sprint 1: The Problem - What’s the pain? 

Sprint 2: The Solution and Business Model - What’s the solution? Is it a viable business and is it income-generating? 

Sprint 3: Lean Startup - Is there a clear understanding of the audience and situation to create a strong hypothesis? Testing and iterating is key! 

Sprint 4: Build, measure and learn. What could be improved? 

Accenture held CV workshops and there was a talk from Niki Beatle, Chairman of XTX markets, all with the aim to inspire product innovation, thinking outside the box, building excitement for challenges and ultimately a movement into the world of technology post-graduation.

Claudia Coppenolle from Deutsche Bank kicked off the Sunday, speaking to students about how to present their products and how to react to critique, questions and keep calm in front of the audience. The pitches were judged by senior players at XTX, DB and Bud, on Coding (30%), Business Model (30%), Pitch (20%), Impact (10%) and Creativity (10%). 

Students came up with products that prevented the wasted time and subsequent costs of missed NHS appointments, those that help the public and police collaborate to fight crime, bridge the gap between farmers and suppliers in Indonesia, and many more innovative ideas. 

The winning team received a 4 day immersive tech visionary experience with Accenture, and insight day at Deutsche Bank as well as a drone! BabyBlues was the winner, which aims to help remove the stigma around post-partum depression, connecting sufferers with support.