AI and ML for Microscopy, Hackathon
Machine Learning for Microscopy Hackathon 2
December 16–18, 2025 · Hybrid (In-person + Virtual)
Don’t camp in the lab to join the hackathon 😄
Two enthusiastic participants decided to camp out in the microscopy lab so they wouldn’t
miss the hackathon… until a friend walks in and reminds them:
you can just register online.
No sleeping bags required — just bring your ideas, curiosity, and a laptop.
Sign up, join a team, and be ready when the challenges drop.
Video created by Austin Houston, Utkarsh Pratiush and Kamyar Barakati.
What is the Hackathon?
The Machine Learning for Microscopy Hackathon is a hands-on event that brings together researchers, students, and professionals to solve real microscopy problems using AI and data-driven tools. Participants work in small interdisciplinary teams to explore imaging, spectroscopy, and automation challenges, learning from mentors and peers along the way.
Multi-Site Participation
Attend in person or join remotely — teams will collaborate across sites and time zones. Confirmed 2025 host sites include:
Interested in hosting a site? Contact sergei2@utk.edu.
Why Participate?
Work with real microscopy datasets and apply state-of-the-art AI methods.
Form teams with participants from around the world — fully remote participation supported.
Share code, data, and discoveries that extend beyond the event.
Showcase your work to researchers, labs, and industry partners.
Timeline
| Phase | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Registration & Team Formation | Now – Dec 14 | Register to attend online or in-person at one of our sites. Registration for attending in-person closes Dec 10 |
| Team Formation | Now – Dec 16 | Join Slack, and find collaborators. |
| Hackathon Start | Dec 16 | Opening session and challenge release. |
| Mentorship & Collaboration | Dec 16–17 | Hands-on work with mentors and cross-site support. |
| Final Presentations | Dec 18 | Team presentations and submissions. |
| Judging Period | Dec 19 – Jan 2026 | Judging of submissions by the Jury. |
| Award Announcement | Jan 2026 (TBA) | Winners announced after judging is completed. |
| Post-Event | Jan 2026 | Paper writing and open-source integration. |
Logistics
The hackathon will take place in hybrid format using Zoom for talks and Slack + Miro for collaboration.
Sponsors & Partners
Supported by the Office of Naval Research (ONR), Thermo Fisher Scientific, Renaissance Philanthropy, Mat3ra – Materials R&D Cloud, Covalent Metrology, Toyota Research Institute, Waviks, Microscopy Society of Ameriica, Student Council, Hugging Face, DENS solutions, Polaron, Theia Scientific and Computational Materials Science (COMMAT), Elsevier . Learn more about our partners on the Awards page.