Cork Ocean Hackathon Winners to Represent Ireland in France

The Cork Ocean Hackathon 2026 brought together innovators, researchers, students, entrepreneurs and marine enthusiasts for an intense weekend of collaboration and problem-solving at Cork County Hall.

Ocean Hackathon® is an international non-profit initiative that challenges participants to develop innovative prototypes in 48 hours using marine data. The events encourage researchers, developers, entrepreneurs and ocean enthusiasts to work together on solutions for the preservation and enhancement of marine resources.

The Cork edition was organised by Cork County Council, a partner in the UPWELLING Interreg Atlantic Area project, in collaboration with University College Cork’s MaREI Research Centre and Dublin City University, together with organisations from Ireland’s marine and blue economy sectors.

Five multidisciplinary teams took on four marine-related challenges. Over the course of the event, participants explored marine datasets and developed their solutions before refining their presentations for the final judging session.

On the final day, each team delivered a ten-minute presentation to an expert judging panel made up of Dr Jimmy Murphy (UCC MaREI), Katie Healy (BIM), Kevin Curran (Cork County Council’s Local Enterprise Office) and Anthonin Lizé (Marine Institute).

The judges praised the high standard of submissions, highlighting the innovative approaches and strong technical skills shown by all participants. Scores were exceptionally close, a sign of the quality of work across every team.

Team 4, made up of Natasya Habibah, Abdullah Kamil and Chiragasourabh, was crowned Cork Ocean Hackathon 2026 Champions. They will represent Ireland at the Ocean Hackathon® Grand Finale in Brest, Brittany, France, on 10 December.

Second place went to Felix Sproll, Abraar Khatir, Adessayo Akintunde and Garry Lohan, while Jack Bourke-McKenna, Surya Prakash Vellingiri, Kamini Ravichandraan and Lohith Kumar Prem Kumar finished third.

Cllr Bernard Moynihan, Mayor of the County of Cork:

“Cork County Council is proud to host this inspiring event as part of the UPWELLING Project, bringing together students, researchers, entrepreneurs, industry experts and ocean enthusiasts to develop innovative solutions for our marine and maritime sectors. Over the past two days, participants have demonstrated exceptional creativity, collaboration and technical excellence, highlighting the vital role of innovation in shaping a sustainable ocean future. To the winning team, I wish you every success as you represent Cork and Ireland at the International Final in France later this year.”