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| Last year’s Final Round competitors celebrating a job well done |
Hash Code is our flagship team programming competition for students and professionals in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. The 2018 contest will kick off with an Online Qualification Round on Thursday, March 1st. During this virtual round, teams can participate from wherever they’d like, but we’d recommend joining a Hash Code hub (more info below). Top scoring teams from the Online Qualification Round will be invited to Google Dublin in April to go head-to-head for the title of Hash Code 2018 Champion.
Last year, more than 26,000 developers from 100+ countries participated in Hash Code. In the end, it was AIM Tech from Russia who took home the coveted Hash Code trophy during the Final Round at Google Paris.
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| First place team, AIM Tech, celebrates onstage at the Final Round after being announced the winners of Hash Code 2017 |
Want to take part in Hash Code? Here’s what you need to know:
The problems are modeled after Google engineering challenges
We want participants to experience what software engineering is like at Google, so we model Hash Code problems after challenges faced by Google engineering teams. Past problems have included optimizing video serving on YouTube, routing Streetview cars through a busy city, and optimizing the layout of a Google data center.
And just like software engineering at Google, there is no one correct solution to Hash Code problems. Instead, each round of the competition is designed as a battle of heuristics: participants work together to develop approximate solutions and then launch and iterate to progressively improve their score. Ingrid von Glehn, a Software Engineer at Google London, adds: “We design the problems to be challenging, but not intimidating. It’s important to us that everyone has fun while taking part.”
Participants work in teams
To compete in Hash Code, you need to form a team of 2 to 4 people. This means it’s not just about what you know individually, but about how you and your team can work together to find better approaches and approximations as you advance through the problem.
Damien, a Software Engineer at Google Zurich, has been a part of Hash Code since the beginning, first as a competitor and now as a volunteer. He advises participants to form well-rounded teams in order to succeed at Hash Code. “Combining different insights and skills can be the key to climbing the scoreboard,” Damien says. “The more diverse your team is, the better off you'll be!”
Want to compete, but don’t have a team yet? Don’t worry! Once you’ve registered for the competition, you can use our Facebook Event and Google+ community to find a great mix of members for your team.
Hubs add extra fun to the Online Qualification Round
Hubs are meetups where teams in the same area can come together to compete in the Online Qualification Round. Hubs add extra excitement to the competition and are a great opportunity for you to connect with other developers in your community.
So far, more than 250 hubs have been registered by universities, Google Developer Groups, coworking spaces, and other organizations across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
Don’t see a hub registered near you? It’s not too late to sign up to host a hub in your local area - find out more here!
Ready to accept the challenge? Sign up today!
Registration will stay open until February 26, 2018.
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| Teams hard at work tackling our wireless router placement problem during 2017’s Final Round in Paris. |