Government Introduces '5G Innovation Hackathon 2025' to Tackle Societal and Industrial Issues
Click to start listening
Synopsis
The Department of Telecommunications has initiated the '5G Innovation Hackathon 2025', a six-month program to foster the development of groundbreaking 5G solutions for societal and industrial challenges, offering mentorship and funding.
Key Takeaways
- Launch of '5G Innovation Hackathon 2025'
- Open to students, startups, and professionals
- Significant cash prizes for winners
- Focus on innovative 5G applications
- Support mechanisms for participants
New Delhi, March 17 (NationPress) The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has officially launched the '5G Innovation Hackathon 2025', a six-month initiative designed to expedite the creation of innovative solutions powered by 5G technology to confront various societal and industrial challenges.
This program is open to students, startups, and professionals, offering mentorship, funding, and access to more than 100 5G Use Case Labs. Participants will have the opportunity to turn their visionary ideas into scalable technologies, as stated by the Ministry of Communications.
Significant rewards await the winners, including Rs 5,00,000 for first place, Rs 3,00,000 for the runner-up, and Rs 1,50,000 for the second runner-up.
Additionally, there will be special mentions for the Best Idea and Most Innovative Prototype, with each receiving Rs 50,000. Ten labs will also receive Certificates of Appreciation for the Best 5G Use Case, along with one certificate for the Best Idea from Emerging Institute.
The hackathon invites submissions centered around critical 5G applications such as AI-driven network maintenance, IoT-enabled solutions, 5G broadcasting, smart health, agriculture, industrial automation, non-terrestrial networks (NTN), D2M, V2X, and quantum communication.
Participants are encouraged to utilize 5G features like network slicing, Quality of Service (QoS), and call-flow scenarios to tackle real-world challenges.
The hackathon provides a range of support mechanisms aimed at helping participants elevate their innovations. They will receive assistance in IPR filing to commercialize their intellectual property assets.
The hackathon will progress through several phases, each designed to cultivate and refine ideas from initial proposal to final assessment.
Each institution will have the opportunity to recommend up to five proposals for DoT screening, with regional committees selecting the top entries for further evaluation.
The concluding stage, Evaluation and Showcase, is scheduled for late September 2025, where teams will present their prototypes to a Technical Expert Evaluation Committee (TEEC).
The announcement of winners will occur in October, with top teams showcasing their innovations at the India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2025, one of the most esteemed technology events in the nation.
This initiative, backed by a budget of Rs 1.5 crore, will encompass seed funding, IPR support, mentorship, and operational expenses.
The objective is to develop over 50 scalable 5G prototypes, generate more than 25 patents, enhance collaboration among academia, industry, and government, and foster startup growth.
