TasNetworks x UTAS x AWS Hackathon 2026
A three-day hackathon where UTAS students built prototypes for real energy challenges set by TasNetworks, and the winning team was offered paid internships.
About this event
The TasNetworks x UTAS x AWS Hackathon 2026 was a three-day industry collaboration held from 25 May 2026 at The Forest, the University of Tasmania's inner-city hub in Hobart. Organised by TasNetworks, the University of Tasmania (UTAS) School of ICT, and Amazon Web Services (AWS), the event challenged students to develop innovative technology solutions to real-world problems facing Tasmania's electricity network.
The hackathon was officially launched on 25 May, with Madeleine Ogilvie, Tasmania's Minister for Innovation, Science and the Digital Economy, attending alongside representatives from the three partner organisations.
Fifty UTAS students worked in teams to address seven industry challenges identified by TasNetworks employees through the organisation's internal Think Tank program. These challenges covered areas such as network data modelling, customer design processes, asset identification, and protecting threatened bird species. Students explored how cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and emerging technologies could be applied to these practical challenges.
Over three days, participating teams collaborated to design, develop, and present prototype solutions. One example was GridMind AI, developed by a five-member student team to address the management of more than 800 technical documents used by TasNetworks field workers. The prototype used AWS serverless technologies to identify document quality issues, support expert review, and make approved technical information easier to search and access.
A judging panel representing TasNetworks, UTAS, and AWS evaluated the teams based on their understanding of the challenges, critical thinking, teamwork, system architecture, technical ambition, feasibility, and presentation skills.
The announced prizes included paid internship opportunities with TasNetworks for the winning team, Amazon vouchers provided by AWS, and an opportunity for the second-placed team to have lunch with TasNetworks executives. Several challenge statements were also expected to be developed further through School of ICT final-year projects in Semester 2 2026 and Semester 1 2027.
For UTAS students, the hackathon demonstrated the value of applying academic knowledge to real industry problems within a limited timeframe. It provided practical experience in cloud-based solution development, collaborative problem-solving, technical communication, and presenting ideas to industry professionals. The event also highlighted opportunities to build professional networks, gain industry exposure, and explore potential career pathways in Tasmania's technology and energy sectors.
References
What students said on LinkedIn
Student reflections and posts from the event.
Chavin's team of five took on a real TasNetworks problem: more than 800 technical documents that field workers rely on for safety and compliance, with a backlog estimated at seven years to fix by hand. In 72 hours they built GridMind AI, a prototype that checks document quality, routes changes to experts for review and makes approved knowledge searchable in plain language, running on AWS serverless services.
Photo Booth