LFC.DEV runs a Bluesky Hackathon for Cofounder Matching
On January 18th, a group of enthusiastic developers, innovators, and community members gathered in New York City for our first-ever Bluesky Hackathon, hosted by Fractal Tech and sponsored by Banc of California and Bloomberg Beta. The goal? Build something amazing using Bluesky’s AT Protocol firehose or Jetstream. And that’s exactly what happened.
Kicking Things Off
The day started bright and early, participants arrived at 9:30 AM (some even came early). At 10:00, everyone pitched themsves and what they wanted to work on. For the frst time in my life, everyone stuck to the time limit without needing to be cut off.
Armed with coffee, laptops, kombucha and an abundance of creativity, the hacking was underway. From seasoned developers to first-time builders trying their hand with AI coding tools, everyone brought something unique to the table.
Highlights of the Day
Aside from the incredible projects, the hackathon had its share of memorable moments. A few attendees brought their babies, who added a lively and adorable energy to the room. Midway through the event, some participants took a break to go for a walk in the rain, embracing the camaraderie that the hackathon fostered.
Of course, no hackathon is complete without fuel. A generous spread of pizzas from Carmine & Sons kept everyone’s energy up, and the casual atmosphere made it easy for attendees to connect, collaborate, and share ideas.
Closing Demos and Prizes
As the day wrapped up, teams presented their projects during the demo session. With just three minutes per team, the focus was on showing what they had built and how it worked. The judges, including Sarah (Tamas) Kadar (Bluesky Community Developer), John Bryson (Banc of California), and Lori Berenberg (Bloomberg Beta), awarded five prizes totaling $1,300:
- Best Bluesky Fun Project: Jake’s Guild System added a social layer to Bluesky, enabling users to create and join groups based on shared interests. It was a fun and engaging take on building community within the platform.
- Best Bluesky Overall: Carl impressed everyone with a UI update for Reddit-style threading, bringing collapsible threads to Bluesky’s interface and making it easier to follow conversations. Not content with just doing this for the hackathon, Carl shipped a PR to the production repo!
- Best Bluesky Insight: Alex and Tom’s project, "First Time Skeeters," created a website where you can view the very first message posted by new Bluesky users. It offered a fascinating lens into how people introduce themselves to the platform.
- Best Bootstrapped Potential: Karan and Bryan’s semantic analysis tool for Bluesky posts demonstrated a deeper understanding of the platform’s content and trends, opening doors for more nuanced insights.
- Best VC Scale Project: Piyush’s project took AI messaging to the next level, enabling users to identify their target market and send customized messages that adapt to the recipient’s tone, interests, and style.
Thank You to Our Sponsors
The event wouldn’t have been possible without the support of Fractal Tech which provided the venue, and our sponsors Banc of California and Bloomberg Beta. Banc of California’s Build@Banc program supports startups with banking services tailored to early-stage companies, while Bloomberg Beta’s investments in the future of work made them a perfect fit for this event.
A Community of Builders
As the hackathon came to a close, participants left with more than just completed projects. New friendships were formed, ideas sparked, and connections made. Maybe the hackathon will lead to a UI improvement landing in the production Bluesky client.
Looking forward to the next hackathon, where we can continue to help cofounders find one another!
PS. If you’d like to sponsor an upcoming event, please reach out to hello@lfc.dev
