It all started as an idea. When I asked my friends Adithya and Raghav, “Why don’t we organize a nationwide hackathon for Apple platform developers in India after the announcement of WWDC25?” I thought I was being crazy and that it might not gain traction. Come on, it’s a nationwide hackathon—how would we even pull it off? It seemed impossible, but we didn’t give up.

India already has a strong Swift developer community, with eight local groups in Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Mumbai, Kozhikode, Hyderabad, and Surat. All the organizers came together to make it happen.

At the same time, I reached out to my team and pitched the idea. They were thrilled and jumped right in. Zoho Apptics was on board. Meanwhile, Adithya searched for other sponsors, and soon RevenueFlo, Adapty, Devfolio, Kanini, and Ixigo joined in. A heartfelt thanks to them for supporting this community event.

To be honest, when we first announced the hackathon, I expected maybe 100 registrations in total. But the numbers quickly started climbing, and we crossed 1000 nationwide. By the time registrations closed, we had more than 1500 developers signed up. The next big task was communication. We sent the communication details via mail, WhatsApp and Discord. We were practically living on those channels around the clock.

Once registrations ended on July 12, participants had until July 17 to build their apps. On submission day, we were blown away by the creativity and quality. Then came the shortlisting for the semifinals on July 19. It took us seven intense hours to carefully evaluate all the entries.

The most chaotic moment was when we had to categorize apps, send invites, and create groups on WhatsApp and Discord. My WhatsApp account got locked due to excessive activity, which left me stunned. I appealed and explained that the activity came from organizing a hackathon. After eight hours, my account was restored, and I felt immense relief.

The Semifinals: Traveling Across India

For the semifinals, our Apptics and IndeHub teams divided across cities. I traveled to Delhi and served as a judge along with Sameer, Maninder, Sejal, Raghav, and Bhupesh. Judging was tough, but we finally selected two teams from Delhi. Other cities also picked their finalists.

The Grand Finale: Apple Developer Center, Bangalore

Then came the big day at the Apple Developer Center in Bangalore. Fourteen finalists from across India competed for the title of “Winner.” Each product was impressive, and the judges had a very hard time deciding. The apps were inspiring one after another, and I was personally moved by the talent and creativity. After another seven hours of evaluation, the judges announced the winners: WordJam, Expense Agent, and Zenther AI. The day flew by in a blur, but it was an unforgettable experience.

The Real Victory: Young Minds, Big Dreams

One of the most inspiring aspects was seeing young developers, many still in school, building remarkable apps. This reflects the strength of Apple’s ecosystem. SwiftUI has lowered the barrier to entry, and AI tools have given developers powerful ways to bring their ideas to life. Together, these have made it easier than ever to create innovative applications.

Reflections: What We Learned

Organizing a large-scale event like this was challenging, but also deeply rewarding. I learned valuable lessons from the mistakes and see many opportunities for improvement. Above all, I am grateful to the Apple platform developer community in India for their support and collaboration. Thank you for making this event possible. I look forward to building on this foundation and creating an even more memorable experience next year.

Finally, I want to thank my wife Abeer, who was there with me, reassuring me that our idea was not crazy and even if it sounded crazy, we would pull it off. And yes, we did pull it off!

Sometimes the most beautiful things come from the chaos of pursuing something bigger than ourselves. This hackathon wasn’t just about apps, it was about community, dreams, and proving that impossible is just another word waiting to be redefined.

Teams presenting at The IndeHub hackathon 2025

Teams presenting at The IndeHub hackathon 2025

The IndeHub hackathon 2025 Winners

The IndeHub hackathon 2025 group picture

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