Dunmade Majuyi, Convener of Babcock Tech Week 2026, announced that the Tethered Hackathon offers a grand prize of ₦4,000,000 for first place, ₦2,000,000 for second, and ₦1,000,000 for third, plus several vertical and technical excellence awards.
The ₦10 million competition constitutes the central feature of Babcock University's second annual Babcock Tech Week, scheduled to take place from 22 to 28 March 2026 under the theme "Tethered Connected Across Disciplines."
Majuyi explained that every competing team must include at least one student from outside the School of Computing, a structural requirement that ensures the competition rewards genuine cross disciplinary thinking, not just technical execution.
The event, organised by the Babcock University Computer Club in collaboration with the Finance Students Association, Google Developer Groups on Campus, Babcock, and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, is designed to draw students from every faculty across the university.
The Tethered Hackathon and Pitchathon are now open to participants both within and outside Babcock University, establishing BTW 2026 as one of the country's most accessible student innovation events.
Obata Onyelukachukwu, Head of Partnerships and External Relations for BTW 2026, noted that a generation of builders at Babcock has yet to be fully recognised by the industry, describing BTW as the platform where this connection occurs.
"The organisations that will show up aren't just doing students a favour, they're getting early access to the most exciting talent pipeline in this country, before it belongs to anyone else," Onyelukachukwu stated.
The week will also feature a full day Career Fair on Tuesday, 24th March 2026, open to students across all disciplines and individuals outside the university as well, giving organisations direct access to Babcock's student talent pool and giving students a direct line to internship and employment opportunities.
Majuyi described the theme as a deliberate acknowledgement that the most consequential work happening at the intersection of technology, finance, health, and society cannot be done by any single discipline alone.
BTW 2026 features panel discussions on Africa's Digital Future, Funding Innovation, and Capital Markets and Venture Ecosystems, with confirmed speakers including Ayotunde Coker, CEO of Open Access Data Centres; Ayo Adegboye, CEO of Arravo; Ifeoluwa Sobogun, Technical Lead at Paystack; and Fatumata Coker, Chairman of CreditRegistry.
Industry partners include Arravo Technology, Open Access Data Centres, Blue Marina Asset Management, Access Holdings, CreditRegistry, and Cordros Securities.
