Please read and understand the official natHACKS rules BEFORE registering for natHACKS!

In addition to the rules listed below, you can access them as a seperate document natHACKS rules document.

NeurAlbertaTech Hackathon (the “Hackathon”)

Official Rules

Submission to participate in the Hackathon by any and all individuals constitutes agreement to the Official Rules of the Hackathon and each participant consents to be bound by all the terms and conditions stated herein.

Each participant or team participating in the Hackathon may submit one project for a chance to win one of the prizes outlined in the Official Rules.

BETWEEN

NeurAlbertaTech Neurotechnologies, Ltd. (“NeurAlbertaTech”)

- And -

Individuals identified in the submission document (“Participants”)

- Hosted by -

Devpost, Inc. (“Devpost”)

1. BACKGROUND

1.1 NeurAlbertaTech is hosting the Hackathon event scheduled for July 30, 2021 through August 2, 2021. The Hackathon schedule is as follows:

 Competition Period: 18:00 MDT July 30, 2021 - 10:00 MDT August 2, 2021

Submission Period: 8:00 MDT - 10:00 MDT August 2, 2021

Judging Period: 10:00 MDT - 13:00 MDT August 2, 2021

1.2 The deadline for registration in the Hackathon is as follows:

Individual registration (with Hacker Survival Kit): 23:59 MDT July 5, 2021

Individual registration (no Hacker Survival Kit): 23:59 MDT July 15, 2021

Team registration and finalization: 17:00 MDT July 30, 2021

Application for brain-computer interface hardware: 23:59 MDT July 9, 2021

1.3 The Hackathon shall take place virtually.

1.4 No purchase is required to participate in or win the Hackathon. No purchase or payment will improve a participant’s chance of winning the Hackathon.

2. DEFINITIONS

2.1 “Participants” means entrants in the Hackathon, who can participate solely as individuals or as a team of no more than five individuals.

2.2 “Team” means a group entrant of no more than five individuals.

2.3 “Team Representative” means the representative of each Team who is authorized to represent, act on behalf of, and enter a submission for the Team.

2.4 “natHACKS” means the Hackathon that is to take place as defined in Section 1.

2.5 “natPortal” means a custom web interface through which all natHACKS documentation can be accessed by Participants.

2.6 “Judge” means third-party volunteers from the neurotechnology community appointed by natHACKS, which may include any individuals from academia, healthcare, industry and/or non-profit organizations.

2.7 “Project” means the final submission entered during the Submission Period by each Team Representative.

2.8 “Code” means any software program written as part of a Submission to the Hackathon.

2.9 “Hacker Survival Kit” means a swag bag of NeurAlbertaTech and natHACKS merchandise shipped to Participants.

2.10 “Hardware Kits” means brain-computer interface hardware used for the purpose of collecting real brain data for use during the Hackathon.

3. ELIGIBILITY

3.1 Participants must be at least eighteen (18) years of age and the age of majority under the laws of the jurisdiction in which they reside.

3.2 Participants residing in jurisdictions that include, but may not be limited to, the following are ineligible to compete in the Hackathon:

Brazil

Quebec

Cuba

Iran

North Korea

Syria

Crimea

3.3 Participants must be eligible to receive prizes in competitions such as the Hackathon under the laws of the jurisdiction in which they reside.

3.4 Participants may have only one entry, either individually or with one Team.

3.5 Participants in the Junior Track of the Hackathon must have no more than two (2) years of postsecondary education and must not be majors in a Department of Computing Science.

3.6 Participants must be current high school or postsecondary students or recent graduates who have graduated from high school or postsecondary within the past twenty-four (24) months.

3.7 Participants may be members of student chapters or volunteers of NeurAlbertaTech.

3.8 Teams must have at least one Alberta resident in order to be eligible to receive Prizes.

3.9 Participants cannot be organizations involved with the design, production, paid promotion, execution, or distributors of the Hackathon, including NeurAlbertaTech and Devpost.

3.10 Participants cannot be employees, representatives, agents, or immediate family or household members of NeurAlbertaTech or Devpost. This includes, but is not limited to, any spouse, child, parent, sibling, member sharing a residence for three months yearly, parent company, subsidiary, organization under common control or sharing a common majority or controlling owners or common management or substantially owned by another organization.

3.11 NeurAlbertaTech reserves the right to declare any other individual or organization ineligible, whose participation in the Hackathon would create a real or apparent conflict of interest, in their sole discretion.

4. PROJECT TRACKS

4.1 Teams may submit one (1) Project during the Submission Period to be judged for the chance to win one of the Hackathon Prizes.

4.2 A Track is defined as a competition division governed by a specific theme for Projects. All Track choices must be finalized by July 30, 2021 (17:00 MDT) and must be approved by NeurAlbertaTech in its sole discretion. Team Representatives are responsible for finalizing Project Track. Failure to do so may result in disqualification.

4.3 Each project must be situated within one of the following Project Tracks:

4.3.1 Rehabilitation

 Of, or related to, the assessment, diagnosis, or treatment of brain disease or neurological disorders

4.3.2 Recreation

 Of, or related to, entertainment experiences

4.3.3 Research

Of, or related to, basic research or the development of novel methodologies in the collection, analysis or visualization of data

4.3.4 Junior

A Track for Teams that are fully composed of junior Participants who meet the criteria set out in Section 3.3. Junior Participants must have no more than two (2) years of postsecondary education and must not be majoring or minoring in a Department of Computing Science.

4.4 Placement in Tracks is at the discretion of natHACKS.

5. SUBMISSIONS

5.1 Participants may submit one (1) Project to be evaluated by the Hackathon Judges consisting of the following:

5.1.1 A Project Summary

A written project summary of approximately 250 words.

5.1.2 A Project Presentation

A 5 minute video presentation.

A rubric for the video presentation will be provided to Participants

5.1.3 A Project Code Repository

A link to a public Github repository

Note that all code MUST be developed during the Hackathon time window only.

5.2 All Code developed for the Hackathon belongs to the Participants who developed the Code.

5.3 All official technical and pitch mentors will be required to sign a confidentiality agreement with the intention of protecting the intellectual property of Participants.

5.4 Any photos, videos, or other materials submitted as part of the Hackathon may be used by NeurAlbertaTech for promotional purposes, including Participants' names and Projects. Participants agree to allow NeurAlbertaTech to reproduce, share, and otherwise use any submitted materials at NeurAlbertaTech’s discretion.

6. JUDGES AND RESULTS

6.1 NeurAlbertaTech will recruit and appoint third-party volunteers from the global neurotechnology-related community.

6.2 Judges will award first-place and second-place results in the Project Tracks, including Rehabilitation, Recreation, and Research.

6.3 Judges will award one Best Overall Award for the Junior Track Projects.

6.4 Judging will follow a standardized rubric; the judging rubric will be provided to participants on natPortal by July 30, 2021 (23:59 MDT).

6.5 Awards will be announced at the Closing Ceremony taking place August 2, 2021 at 13:30 MDT.

7. PRIZES

7.1 Based on the Judges’ results awarded in Section 6, the winning Participants will receive the following monetary funding (the “Prize”):

7.2 Teams must have at least one Alberta resident in order to be eligible to receive Prizes.

7.3 The Prizes are subject to change without notice by NeurAlbertaTech.

7.4 Each Team is eligible for one (1) Prize.

7.5 Each winning Team will be featured on at least one post from at least one NeurAlbertaTech social media account.

7.6 Each winning Team and their Project will be featured on NeurAlbertaTech’s online community webpage.

7.7 Prize Conditions:

The Prize will be held by NeurAlbertaTech on behalf of the winning Team for up to one (1) year. The Prize will be released to the winning Team once the Team has completed the following specific requirements:

 Future Development Plan:

• The winning Team must submit a detailed Project Plan to NeurAlbertaTech prior to 23:59 MDT August 20, 2021.

• NeurAlbertaTech will provide a template regarding the Project Plan on natPortal prior to 23:59 MDT August 5, 2021.

• The Project Plan may include, but is not limited to:

• Technical Aspects

• Research validation (if applicable)

• Commercialization

• Anticipated expenses

Quarterly Deadlines:

• Receipts for pre-approved expenses are to be submitted quarterly by 23:59 MDT on the following days:

• October 1, 2021

• January 1, 2022

• April 1, 2022

• July 1, 2022

• Expenses must be pre-approved before purchases are made in order to be reimbursed. In order to request approval, Teams must contact neuralbertatech@gmail.com with a detailed explanation of the expense.

8. HARDWARE - KITS AND REIMBURSEMENT

8.1 Brain-computer interface hardware and necessary peripherals (“Hardware Kits”) are available to those wishing to apply to the competitive Hardware Scholarship Program.

8.2 Participants with a mailing address in Canada or mainland United States are eligible to receive Hardware Kits.

8.3 Applications for Hardware Kits are due at 23:59 MDT July 5, 2021. The decision to award Participants with Hardware Kits is at the sole discretion of NeurAlbertaTech.

8.4 All Hardware Kits provided by NeurAlbertaTech to Participants are through rental only.

8.5 Eighty percent (80%) of the Hardware Kits will be sent to Participants with a Canadian address.

8.6 The Hardware Kits shall include the following:

8.6.1 OpenBCI: https://shop.openbci.com/ 

• 1 X Ganglion Dongle
• 1 X Ganglion
• 1 X Gold Cup Electrodes Pack
• 1 X EMG/ECG Snap Electrode Cables
• 1 X EMG/ECG Foam Solid Gel Electrodes (30/pack)
• 1 X Ten20 Paste

8.6.2 Muse 2: https://choosemuse.com/muse-2/ 

• 1 X MicroUSB Charger
• 1 X Muse 2 Device
• 1 X USB BLE Dongle

8.6.3 Muse S: https://choosemuse.com/muse-s/ 

• 1 X MicroUSB Charger
• 1 X Muse S Device
• 1 X USB BLE Dongle

8.7 To receive Hardware Kits, Participants must pay the following costs via Interac e-Transfer to neuralbertatech@gmail.com as a deposit for the hardware:

8.8 NeurAlbertaTech Hardware Shipping

The Hardware Kits will be shipped between July 6, 2021 and July 7, 2021, and the tracking number will be provided to the Team.

8.9 NeurAlbertaTech Deposit Reimbursement

NeurAlbertaTech will reimburse Participants for the Hardware Kits provided that the following requirements are met:

The Hardware Kits must be shipped back between August 2, 2021 and August 7, 2021 to the following address:

NeurAlbertaTech Neurotechnologies, Ltd.

4954 106 Street NW

Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

T6H 2S6

The Hardware Kits must be returned shipped in the same container used by NeurAlbertaTech to send the Hardware Kits to the Participant.

 All of the Hardware Kit, including peripherals, must be returned.

 Participants must ensure basic tracking is included on the return shipped Hardware Kits.

 Participants must submit an itemized receipt of shipping costs, including tracking number, to NeurAlbertaTech via natPortal.

8.10 Participants will be reimbursed by NeurAlbertaTech for the cost of the hardware deposit via Interac e-Transfer within 5 days of NeurAlbertaTech receiving shipment of Hardware Kit in its entirety pursuant to the requirements in Section 8.10 and in its original condition.

8.11 Participants will be reimbursed for the return shipping costs of the Hardware Kits provided the itemized receipts for shipping are included pursuant to Section 8.10.