AI Sweden is bringing together Swedish civil society organizations for an innovative hackathon. Impact Hack 2025 aims to foster innovation and collaboration, identify concrete applications of AI for social impact, and drive positive change.
"The winning team will receive 100,000 SEK to further develop their concept," says Carl Norling Markai, project manager for AI for Impact.
AI Sweden's mission is to accelerate AI adoption across Sweden to benefit society. The civil society sector holds significant potential for leveraging AI to address crucial challenges.
"The hackathon's goal is to connect non-profit organizations with AI experts to collaboratively develop innovative AI solutions," explains Carl Norling Markai.
Carl Norling Markai
Impact Initiative Developer at AI Sweden
The event will unfold in two stages: initial idea generation followed by hands-on development during an intensive day in March. In the first stage, AI Sweden will host three online workshops where organizations can refine their ideas before submitting them to a jury. The jury will then select ten finalists to participate in the March hackathon.
"We welcome ideas of all scales, provided they demonstrate potential for real social impact. This could include applications of large language models, audio transcription, image analysis, or workflow optimization," says Carl Norling Markai.
Proposals will be evaluated on multiple criteria: social impact potential, scalability, innovation, feasibility, AI integration, and ethical considerations.
"The hackathon work isn't limited to technical development. For instance, many projects face legal challenges, so teams could focus on addressing regulatory questions."
During the hackathon, selected organizations will collaborate with AI experts from AI Sweden's network before presenting their solutions to the jury.
"This is an opportunity to work alongside AI and innovation experts while developing solutions with lasting social impact. Whether you're an AI specialist, developer, designer, or represent an organization addressing social challenges – this is your chance to contribute to meaningful change," says Car Norling Markai.
The hackathon welcomes submissions from non-profit organizations committed to addressing social challenges through AI. Non-profit foundations, associations, and social entrepreneurs are invited to submit proposals that:
AI for Impact is an AI Sweden initiative funded by Google.org.
The project comprises three key elements: this hackathon, a talent program in the summer of 2024, and the Civil Society Forum for Responsible AI.