PhilaCon Valley: Hackathon Kickoff + Builder Night

PhilaCon Valley is a builder-first community for people who are actively making things. This Thursday at Pennovation Works, we’re hosting a Lightning Talks + Builder Night and officially kicking off our unified team for the upcoming Good Neighbors citywide hackathon. Five community members will share 5-minute updates on what they’re building — apps, AI systems, civic tools, publishing platforms, and creative experiments in progress. Lightning Speakers • John Bizi — Introducing the CAINS: Custom Zero-Prompt AI Systems That Eliminate Your Most Time-Consuming Tasks • Moo — A Web App Designed to Help Hoopers Stay Honest on the Court (Crowd Meter Included) • Aziz — Using Software to Make Philly City Council More Accessible • Sage (Zaria) — Callyx: Building the Protective Layer Women’s Tech Never Had • Michael — Democratizing the Web: Building User-Owned Publishing with AgoraPages After lightning talks, we shift into team formation. The second half of the night will focus on forming our hackathon team by: • Mapping skills across the room • Identifying 1–2 meaningful problems in Philadelphia • Aligning roles intentionally • Beginning early concept discussions This isn’t a polished demo night. It’s real work in progress. In honor of Ramadan, we’ll provide light refreshments at sunset for those breaking their fast, along with food and beverages for the community. If you’re serious about building and want to collaborate on something meaningful for the city, this room is for you. Limited seating to keep the space intentional.