BIOHackathon 2027 (hereinafter the “Hackathon” or the “Competition”) is an initiative of the Region of Central Macedonia, acting through the Deputy Region of Digital Governance (hereinafter the “Organiser”), which aims to promote scientific research, innovation and interdisciplinary collaboration through the use of modern digital technologies.
The Competition focuses on the use of Artificial Intelligence, Bioinformatics, Computational Biology and Structural Biology tools, such as AlphaFold, to develop scientifically sound and potentially applicable solutions to real-world challenges.
Through collaboration between scientists, researchers, students and professionals from different specialisations, it seeks to connect scientific knowledge with present-day social and productive needs, to strengthen the exchange of know-how and to bring forward innovative research approaches.
Academic institutions, research centres, scientific bodies and specialised professionals, as specified on the official website, take part in the scientific and technical support of the event by providing guidance, shaping the scientific challenges and serving on the relevant committees.
These Terms set out the conditions of participation, the rules for developing and submitting solutions, the evaluation and award procedure, and the rights and obligations of participants.
- 1.
BIOHackathon is open to natural persons, such as students, researchers, members of the academic community, scientists, professionals and other interested persons who wish to contribute to the development of solutions related to the subject of the Competition.
- 2.
Participation is voluntary, and registration for the Competition is free of charge.
- 3.
Each interested person must submit an individual application to participate, using the online registration form available on the official BIOHackathon website.
- 4.
By submitting the application, each participant declares that they have taken note of and accept these Terms of Participation.
- 5.
Participants must provide true, accurate and up-to-date information. The Organiser reserves the right to request confirmation of the information provided, where this is deemed necessary for the smooth and lawful conduct of the Competition.
- 6.
Each participant may take part in only one team and contribute to only one competition proposal.
- 7.
Participation in the Competition does not create any relationship of employment, dependent work or agency, or any other contractual relationship, with the Organiser, beyond the obligations and rights arising from these Terms.
- 8.
Participation is open to natural persons who are at least 18 years of age.
- 1.
Solutions are developed and presented exclusively at team level. No provision is made for the individual submission of a competition solution.
- 2.
Each team consists of at least two (2) and up to five (5) members, with the aim of encouraging collaboration between participants from different scientific or professional fields.
- 3.
When registering, interested persons may:
- State that they belong to an already formed team, giving its name.
- Register individually, stating that they wish to join a team to be formed with the assistance of the Organiser.
- 4.
The Organiser undertakes to facilitate the formation of teams from individual participants, taking into account, as far as possible, their scientific background, skills and stated preferences. The Organiser bears no liability if it proves impossible to place an individual participant in a team, in which case their application shall be deemed not to have been made.
- 5.
Each team appoints a representative, who is the main point of contact with the Organiser on matters concerning participation, the submission of the solution and the evaluation procedure.
- 6.
The capacity of representative does not confer exclusive ownership of the proposed solution or of the rights arising from it.
- 7.
The final composition of the teams is confirmed by the Organising Committee. Changes to the composition after it has been finalised are permitted only upon a relevant request and with the approval of the Organiser.
- 8.
The addition of a new member, the withdrawal of a member or a change of representative may not be used abusively to circumvent the terms of participation.
- 1.
Registration for BIOHackathon takes place online, within the deadline announced on the official website of the event.
- 2.
The registration form includes, by way of indication:
- Full name and contact details.
- Capacity (role) and home institution.
- Scientific field and a brief description of specialisation.
- Previous experience with Bioinformatics, Artificial Intelligence and Computational Biology tools.
- Details of an existing team, or an expression of interest in joining a team.
- Preferred thematic challenge and, where applicable, preferred mentor.
- 3.
Submitting the form does not automatically mean that participation is finally accepted. The Organiser may check applications for completeness and accuracy.
- 4.
Where information is incomplete or inaccurate, the applicant may be asked to complete or correct it within a reasonable time limit.
- 5.
Late applications may be accepted only if this is provided for in a relevant announcement by the Organiser and the principles of equal treatment and transparency are observed.
- 6.
The number of participants and teams may be limited according to the organisational and technical capacity available. Any maximum limits, and the method of selection should the places available be oversubscribed — based on the order of submission (first-come, first-served) and/or the relevance of scientific background — are announced before registration opens.
- 1.
In the course of BIOHackathon, participants are invited to develop scientifically sound solutions to specific challenges (cases), making use of modern computational tools and methods of analysis.
- 2.
The Competition comprises four main thematic areas:
- 3.
Each team chooses one of the above thematic challenges and develops its solution in accordance with the detailed description and the specific scientific requirements of the relevant case.
- 4.
The Scientific Committee is responsible for specifying the challenges in detail, defining the intended outcomes and formulating scientific guidance.
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Teams must ensure that their proposed solutions are substantively relevant to the chosen challenge and are based on a well-founded methodological approach.
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The development of a fully functional or commercially exploitable product is not required. A research or computational approach may be submitted, provided that its methodology, results, limitations and potential application are clearly presented.
- 1.
To develop their solutions, teams may use Bioinformatics, Computational Biology and Artificial Intelligence tools, such as, by way of example, AlphaFold, ColabFold, UniProt, BLAST and other related scientific tools or databases.
- 2.
Tools are chosen in accordance with the requirements of each challenge and the guidance of the Scientific Committee.
- 3.
Each participant is responsible for using the tools and services in accordance with the applicable terms of use, licences, technical restrictions and policies of the respective providers.
- 4.
Particular care is required when using AlphaFold Server, as access to it and the use of the outputs it generates are subject to specific restrictions, including with regard to non-commercial use, further processing and redistribution. Participants must check the terms that apply to that service and to the version they use.
- 5.
Teams must state transparently:
- The tools and Artificial Intelligence models they used.
- The databases and external sources.
- The main input data and analysis parameters.
- The methodology for processing and interpreting the results.
- The limitations of the tools used and the uncertainty of the predictions.
- 6.
The results produced must be critically assessed and supported by appropriate scientific sources and, where feasible, by validation data.
- 7.
The use of computational models or Artificial Intelligence applications is no substitute for scientific substantiation, experimental confirmation or the procedures required to verify the reliability of the results.
- 8.
The use of tools and data in a manner that breaches applicable law, infringes the rights of third parties or entails unacceptable risks to health, safety or the environment is prohibited. A breach of this clause entails the immediate exclusion of the team from the Competition, by decision of the Organising Committee, without prejudice to any legal right of the Organiser.
- 9.
Computational predictions and proposed solutions are of a research nature and must not be presented as clinically validated or as suitable for diagnostic or therapeutic use without the required scientific and regulatory substantiation.
- 1.
The detailed timetable, the dates, the submission deadlines, the duration of the presentations, the number of finalists and the place or format of each stage are officially announced by the Organiser.
- 2.
Participants must comply with the deadlines and instructions of the organisers. Late submission of deliverables is not accepted, unless there are proven grounds of force majeure or a general technical failure of the submission platform, as recognised by the Organising Committee.
- 3.
The Organiser reserves the right to adjust procedural details where this is required for the smooth running of the Competition, provided that the equal treatment of participants and the transparency of the evaluation are not unjustifiably affected.
- 1.
In the course of BIOHackathon, participants may receive scientific and technical guidance from specialised mentors.
- 2.
Mentors fall, by way of indication, into the following categories:
- Scientific mentors, specialising in Biology, Biochemistry, Medicine, Chemistry, Bioinformatics or related scientific fields.
- Technical mentors, experienced in the use of computational tools, Artificial Intelligence models and applications such as AlphaFold.
- Mentors with combined scientific and technical expertise.
- 3.
Mentors are matched with teams by the Organising Committee on the basis of the teams’ needs, the relevance of the mentors’ expertise and their availability.
- 4.
The role of mentors is purely advisory and supportive. Mentors may provide guidance, point out scientific or technical issues and suggest methods and sources.
- 5.
Responsibility for the development, methodology, results and final submission of the solution rests solely with the team.
- 6.
Mentors are not automatically regarded as co-creators of the solutions by reason of the advisory support they provide. Mentors provide advisory services only and waive any intellectual property right in the solutions developed by the teams they mentor.
- 1.
Each team must submit a complete presentation of its proposed solution, in accordance with the technical specifications and deadlines announced by the Organiser.
- 2.
The final presentation should include, as a minimum:
- The name of the team and the chosen challenge.
- A description of the scientific problem and of the intended objective.
- The methodology followed.
- The tools, data and scientific sources used.
- The results obtained and how they were assessed.
- The originality and added value of the solution.
- The limitations, assumptions and proposed next steps.
- 3.
Teams must state clearly which elements are their own creative or scientific contribution and which come from third-party sources, existing models or automated tools.
- 4.
The Organiser may request additional material, such as technical documentation, sample code, diagrams, results of computational analyses or bibliographic references, solely to the extent required for the evaluation.
- 5.
Deliverables are submitted through the procedure to be specified by the Organiser.
- 6.
Teams must take part in the scheduled presentations and answer, as far as possible, clarifying questions from the Jury.
For the smooth running of BIOHackathon, the following committees are provided for:
- 1.
Organising Committee
It is responsible for the overall coordination and organisational delivery of the Competition, the management of registrations, the formation of teams, keeping participants informed and ensuring that the prescribed procedure is followed.
It also examines matters relating to the application of these Terms and proposes or takes, as the case may be and within its remit, the necessary organisational decisions.
- 2.
Scientific Committee
It is responsible for the scientific support of the event, shaping and specifying the challenges, providing scientific guidance and supporting the drawing-up of the evaluation criteria.
- 3.
Jury
It is responsible for evaluating the solutions, applying the approved scoring criteria and selecting the winning teams.
Members of the Jury must act with objectivity, impartiality and independence. In the event of an actual or potential conflict of interest, the member concerned must disclose it and abstain from evaluating the team in question. In that case, the average of the other jurors’ scores shall count as the score of the abstaining member.
The composition and remit of the committees are finalised by the competent bodies of the organisers.
- 1.
Evaluation is carried out on the basis of predefined, published criteria, which are applied uniformly to the participating teams.
- 2.
The proposed criteria and weighting factors are as follows:
Evaluation criteria and weighting factors Criterion Weight A. Relevance of the solution to the chosen challenge / Scientific and technical validity / Feasibility and potential impact 35% B. Innovation and originality 25% C. Sound and meaningful use of AI tools / Quality and documentation of the open-source code produced 20% D. Quality of the presentation and documentation of the solution 20% Total 100% - 3.
Each criterion is scored on a scale from zero (0) to ten (10). The final score is the sum of the individual scores, weighted by the respective weighting factors.
- 4.
Where there are several evaluators, each team’s score is the average of the evaluators’ final weighted scores, unless a different method is set and announced before the evaluation begins.
- 5.
In the event of a tie, the team with the higher score in criterion A, “Relevance of the solution to the chosen challenge / Scientific and technical validity / Feasibility and potential impact”, ranks first. If the tie persists, criterion D, “Quality of the presentation and documentation of the solution”, is taken into account.
- 6.
If the tie still persists, the final ranking is determined by a specifically reasoned decision of the Jury, on the basis of the published criteria.
- 7.
The teams’ scores and ranking are recorded in the relevant evaluation minutes.
- 8.
The Organiser may provide for a procedure for lodging substantiated objections concerning manifest procedural errors. The relevant deadlines and the way in which objections are examined are announced before the evaluation. The Jury’s decisions on matters of scientific and technical judgement are final and irrevocable and are not open to objection.
- 9.
The final weighting factors, the scoring method and the tie-breaking procedure must have been approved and published before the competitive evaluation begins.
- 1.
BIOHackathon provides for the award of cash prizes to the three teams that achieve the highest scores in the final evaluation.
- 2.
The proposed cash prizes are:
Cash prizes Award Cash prize 1st prize €1,500 2nd prize €1,000 3rd prize €500 Total €3,000 - 3.
The final establishment and payment of the cash prizes are subject to the issue of the required decisions by the competent bodies, the securing of the relevant budget appropriation and compliance with the prescribed public-finance and other legal procedures.
- 4.
Each prize is awarded to the winning team and paid in equal shares into the bank account of each member separately.
- 5.
The cash prizes are paid in accordance with applicable law and are subject to any applicable tax obligations or statutory deductions.
- 6.
For the award and payment of the prizes, the beneficiaries may be asked to provide the necessary supporting documents.
- 7.
The Organiser may award additional honorary distinctions, commendations or certificates of participation, in accordance with the decisions and the capacity of the organisers.
- 8.
The Jury may recommend that a particular prize not be awarded if no entry meets a minimum level of scientific quality, provided that this level has been set and published in advance.
- 1.
Participants retain any intellectual or industrial property rights they may hold in the original works, methodologies, code, analyses, presentations and other results they create in the course of BIOHackathon.
- 2.
Participation in the Competition does not automatically entail any transfer of intellectual or industrial property rights to the Organiser, the supporters, the mentors or other participants.
- 3.
Participants grant the Organiser a non-exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide licence of indefinite duration to use, present, publish and reproduce the deliverables, presentations and summaries of the solutions for the purposes of publicity, information, education and the promotion of the Region’s activities.
- 4.
Participants must respect the rights of the other teams, the mentors, the partner bodies and any third party.
- 5.
Copying, appropriating or presenting as original work any material created by another participant or a third party, without the required permission or a lawful basis for its use, is prohibited.
- 6.
In the case of a collective creation, the members’ rights in the joint solution are determined by the nature of the creative contribution, applicable law and any agreements between them.
- 7.
The Organiser is under no obligation to undertake any procedures for the registration, protection or commercial exploitation of the solutions submitted.
- 8.
Responsibility for taking measures to protect any rights, such as filing patent applications, lies with the respective right holders.
- 9.
Presenting a solution in public may affect the possibility of protecting certain results at a later stage. Participants must take in good time whatever measures they consider necessary to protect their interests.
- 1.
Participants may make use of third-party works, data, databases, publications, software, libraries and models, provided that such use is permitted by the applicable legal and licensing framework.
- 2.
Each team must comply with the terms of the relevant licences, including any restrictions on the modification, redistribution, commercial exploitation and publication of the results.
- 3.
The use of external sources must be documented with a clear reference to the author, the provider or the relevant publication, where required.
- 4.
The use of confidential information, unlawfully obtained data, protected personal data or other material without the required legal basis or permission is not permitted.
- 5.
The use of health data from which natural persons could be directly or indirectly identified is strictly prohibited. Only fully anonymised or synthetic data from official, open scientific databases may be used.
- 6.
The Organiser may request the removal or replacement of material where it is established, or there are reasonable grounds to believe, that its use or disclosure infringes rights or legal restrictions.
- 1.
Each participant and each team is responsible for the accuracy of their declarations and for the content they submit or present.
- 2.
By submitting their solution, participants declare that, to the best of their knowledge and after reasonable verification:
- The solution includes a genuine contribution by the team.
- The significant external sources have been cited.
- The use of data, software and tools is permitted.
- They are not knowingly infringing the rights of third parties.
- No information subject to an obligation of confidentiality is disclosed.
- No computational predictions are presented as confirmed scientific or clinical results without the required substantiation.
- 3.
The Organiser does not guarantee the scientific accuracy, effectiveness, safety or practical applicability of the solutions submitted.
- 4.
Any further use of the solutions by the participants is at their own responsibility, in accordance with the applicable regulatory framework.
- 5.
The liability of the Organiser and of the participants is governed by applicable law. Nothing in these Terms excludes any liability that may not lawfully be limited or excluded.
- 6.
The Organiser bears no liability for any technical malfunctions, connection interruptions, malfunctions of third-party platforms or computational tools (such as, for example, AlphaFold), or any other technical problem beyond its reasonable control that may affect the development or the timely submission of the teams’ solutions.
- 1.
Participants must observe the principles of scientific ethics, transparency, mutual respect and good-faith collaboration.
- 2.
Harassment, discrimination, intimidation or any conduct that obstructs the smooth participation of other persons is not permitted.
- 3.
Grounds for exclusion include, by way of example:
- A material breach of these Terms.
- Plagiarism or the unlawful appropriation of a third party’s work.
- The submission of materially false or misleading information.
- The deliberate falsification of scientific data or results.
- The unauthorised use of software, data or tools.
- A serious breach of the rules of scientific ethics or safety.
- Any attempt to exert undue influence on the evaluation procedure.
- 4.
Depending on the seriousness of the breach, the Organiser may issue a warning, request corrective action or decide to exclude a participant or team.
- 5.
Before a decision to exclude is taken, the person concerned is given the opportunity to set out their views in writing within a strict time limit of 24 hours from notification of the breach, unless immediate interim action is required for reasons of safety or the protection of rights.
- 6.
Such decisions must be reasoned and taken in accordance with the principles of proportionality, objectivity and equal treatment.
- 1.
The Organiser may promote the Competition, the participating teams and the winning solutions through the official website, press releases, events, presentations and other official communication channels.
- 2.
Participants grant the Organiser a non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to use the material they submit, to the extent that they hold the relevant rights, for the purposes of presenting, communicating, providing information about and promoting BIOHackathon and its results.
- 3.
The licence covers in particular the title of the solution, a short description, summaries, approved excerpts from presentations and related promotional material. It does not automatically confer any right to commercially exploit or disclose the full source code, confidential material or unpublished research data.
- 4.
The above licence does not affect the participants’ ownership of their works, nor does it override the rights and restrictions of third-party providers of software, data or computational models.
- 5.
When solutions are published, the team and the creators are credited wherever feasible.
- 6.
Before final submission, participants must point out any parts of their work that contain confidential information or material subject to disclosure restrictions, so that the possibility of presenting a suitable non-confidential summary can be considered.
- 7.
Participants give their consent to the taking and use of photographs and audiovisual material for the purposes of promoting the event during their online registration.
- 1.
The Region of Central Macedonia processes the personal data necessary for organising and running BIOHackathon in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2016/679), Greek Law 4624/2019, as in force, and the other applicable provisions.
- 2.
The data collected may include identification and contact details, capacity, institution, scientific background, information on team membership and details necessary for the evaluation and award procedure.
- 3.
Processing is carried out for specific purposes connected with:
- Recording and confirming registrations.
- Forming and managing teams.
- Communicating with participants.
- Scientific and technical support.
- Evaluating the solutions and announcing the results.
- Awarding and paying prizes and fulfilling any legal administrative or tax obligations.
- Promoting the event, to the extent that such processing is permitted by law.
- 4.
The legal basis for processing is determined for each purpose, in accordance with Article 6 of the GDPR and the applicable legal framework. Where consent is required, it is requested specifically and separately, and it may be withdrawn.
- 5.
Access to the data may be given, to the extent necessary, to authorised staff of the Organiser, members of the relevant committees and partner service providers involved in technical or organisational support, subject to the required safeguards.
- 6.
The data are kept only for as long as is necessary for the purposes of processing or as required by applicable law and record-keeping rules.
- 7.
Participants may exercise their rights as data subjects, in particular the rights of access, rectification, erasure, restriction of processing and objection, under the conditions laid down in the GDPR.
- 8.
Before submitting their details, interested persons are informed in detail through a separate Privacy Notice, which sets out, among other things, the contact details of the controller and of the Data Protection Officer, the legal bases, the recipients, the retention periods and the ways of exercising their rights.
- 9.
Participants retain the right to lodge a complaint with the Hellenic Data Protection Authority, in accordance with applicable law.
- 1.
The Organiser reserves the right to amend or further specify these Terms where this is required for organisational, technical, scientific or legal reasons.
- 2.
Any material amendment is notified to participants in good time via the official website and, where necessary, by electronic communication.
- 3.
Amendments must not unjustifiably affect the equal treatment of participants, nor retroactively alter the scoring or the evaluation criteria after the relevant procedure has begun.
- 4.
Should events of force majeure, serious technical problems or other exceptional circumstances make the smooth running of the Competition impossible, the Organiser may decide to postpone, modify or cancel it, by means of a reasoned announcement and without prejudice to the rights provided for by applicable law.
- 5.
Matters not expressly provided for in these Terms are governed by the relevant decisions of the competent bodies and by the provisions of Greek and European Union law.
- 6.
These Terms are governed by Greek law. The courts of Thessaloniki shall have exclusive jurisdiction to settle any dispute arising from the application or interpretation of these Terms.
- 7.
By registering online for the Competition, each participant declares that they have taken note of these Terms and that they accept the obligations arising from them.