Fall 2026 QCUP Hackathon
Event Overview
**Submission deadline has been extended to August 14, 2026**
Warnings
- Due to this being our inaugural hackathon, we’re intentionally keeping the cohort small and expect to select only 4–5 teams (roughly 1 per QCUP vendor). This first year will help us refine the format and logistics, and we plan to host future editions with the goal of expanding and accepting more teams.
- Being involved in the Quantum Science Center does not guarantee you will be selected.
- This is not an HPC-focused hackathon; however, QC+HPC applications will still be considered.
Virtual Event
The Fall 2026 QCUP Hackathon will be held virtually. Teams will participate remotely via Zoom and collaborate using Slack. Please ensure your team members are available online during the scheduled dates.
The Quantum Computing User Program (QCUP) Hackathon is a multi day collaborative event designed to advance fundamental scientific research through quantum computing. This hackathon is a virtual event, hosted via Zoom and Slack, bringing together teams and mentors from OLCF, Quantinuum, IBM, IQM, IonQ and other partners.
Admission
Admission to this hackathon is competitive and requires a brief application. The form will ask you to:
- Describe your QC application code or codes.
- Set specific and achievable goals for your team during the hackathon.
Goal Submission
When submitting your goals, please include:
- Clear examples from your application or workflow.
- Links to publicly accessible codes or datasets that support your goals, if available.
Selection Criteria
Teams will be selected based on:
- How clear, specific, and reasonable their goals are for a four day hackathon.
- How effectively they describe their code and its relevance to QCUP and its mission to support fundamental scientific research.
Allocation Requirements
Priority will be given to existing QCUP users. Future users may apply, but must also have a QCUP project proposal submitted by the Hackathon Call for Proposals close date: August 14, 2026. We encourage future users to apply for allocations early to ensure eligibility.
QCUP Applications
Future users will only be considered once they have applied for a QCUP allocation. Please review the Quantum Computing User Program Access page before applying.
Important Note
Avoid proposing goals that require full hardware reservation of QCUP resources for long durations, since hackathon resources will be shared across all teams. For specific resources, emulator usage will be encouraged as an alternative. This also ensures ongoing non-hackathon QCUP science campaigns are not impacted.
Have a question? Check out the FAQs tab or email [email protected]
Team Member Requirements
Although not required, each team is encouraged to have at least two active members during the hackathon.
Proposal Submission
Admission
Admission to this hackathon is competitive and requires a brief application. The application form will ask you to:
- Describe your QC application code or codes.
- Set specific and achievable goals for your team during the hackathon.
Goal Submission
When submitting your goals, please include:
- Clear examples from your application or workflow.
- Links to publicly accessible codes or datasets that support your goals, if available.
Selection Criteria
Our aim is to select teams that can best utilize the hackathon and QCUP to support fundamental scientific research. Teams will be selected based on:
- How clear, specific, and reasonable their goals are for a four day hackathon.
- How effectively they describe their code and its relevance to QCUP and its mission to support fundamental scientific research.
Important Note
Avoid proposing goals that require full hardware reservation of QCUP resources for long durations, since hackathon resources will be shared across all teams. For specific resources, emulator usage will be encouraged as an alternative. This also ensures ongoing non-hackathon QCUP science campaigns are not impacted.
QCUP Applications
Future users will only be considered once they have applied for a QCUP allocation. Please review the Quantum Computer User Program Access page before applying.
Priority will be given to existing QCUP users.
Example Goals
Below are examples to inspire your proposal. Propose other goals that align with your scientific research priorities in QCUP. We will accept proposals that support fundamental scientific research or tools that advance scientific discovery. We will not accept proposals seeking to develop commercial software. This hackathon isn’t a competition and doesn’t have a “challenge problem”—it’s a mentor-supported space to focus on self-motivated code development and optimization.
- Optimize an existing QCUP application for QCUP hardware resources.
- Enable an application to scale effectively across multiple qubits.
- Implement helpful tools or libraries to enhance functionality or usability.
- Tackle performance or scalability issues within your code or workflow.
- Explore methods to accelerate computationally intensive processes (e.g., quantum algorithms).
Hackathon Timeline
The Hackathon Timeline provides key dates, training opportunities, and deadlines to help teams prepare and succeed. Use this section to track important milestones such as the August 14, 2026 proposal deadline, Quantum Training Series, and the scheduled hackathon sessions.
| Event | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Call for Proposals Open | June 29 | Submit proposals under the Proposal Submission form. |
| CFP Closes | August 14, 11:59 p.m. ET | Make sure your proposal is submitted on time. |
| Notification of Selected Teams | August 21 | Acceptance notifications sent to teams. |
| What to Expect and Team Intros | September 25, 1:00–3:00 p.m. ET | Overview of logistics and brief team slide intros with goals and needs. |
| Hackathon Day 1 | September 28, 11:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. ET | Hacking session. |
| Hackathon Day 2 | October 1, 11:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. ET | Hacking session. |
| Hackathon Day 3 | October 5, 11:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. ET | Hacking session. |
| Hackathon Day 4 and Outros | October 8, 11:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. ET | Hacking session. Survey from 3:15–3:30 p.m. ET. Team outros 3:30–5:00 p.m. ET. |
Team Registration
If you are a member of a selected Hackathon Team, please complete this form by 5 p.m. on TBD.
Form coming soon (after hackathon teams are selected).
- Do I have to be present for the full time period from 11 am to 5 pm?
- Although being as present as you can is encouraged, no, both mentors and hackathon teams have day jobs and need breaks, so there is no expectation for you to be present on Zoom/Slack every minute during the hacking period. A major reason we encourage multi-member teams is to have broader coverage during this time period. Additionally, some mentors and hackathon teams have worked asynchronously in the past.
- If I’m not a QCUP user can I still apply?
- Yes; however, you must also submit a QCUP project proposal before the hackathon submission deadline. Both the QCUP proposal and the hackathon proposal will be reviewed as a pair. Please review the Quantum Computing User Program Access page before applying.
- Prospective QCUP PIs must be a faculty or staff at a given institution. Therefore, QCUP PIs cannot be students or post-docs (a student or post-doc can still be a member of the QCUP project, but their advisor must serve as the PI). Although hackathon teams depend on a QCUP project, hackathon teams do not need to include the PI.
- Is there a prize?
- No, this hackathon is purely self-driven and there is no award or prize. What you get out of it is what you put into it. Although there is no “challenge problem”, strive to solve challenging problems.
