How to prepare for FACE 2017? Malaysia’s Greatest AI Hackathon
You have signed up for FACE 2017 and are probably wondering what it’s actually gonna be like. In this article we’ll explain what steps you need to take to be well prepared, and to get the most out of this amazing hackathon!
On November 17–19, you will meet a lot of awesome people, get your hands on some crazy Face recognition and detection technology and meet many mentors who can give you great career/education insights.
What is Artificial Intelligence?
“Artificial Intelligence is a way of making a computer, a computer-controlled robot, or a software think intelligently, in the similar manner the intelligent humans think.” –TutorialsPoint
What is Face technology?
WikiPedia defines Face Detection as “a computer technology being used in a variety of applications that identifies human faces in digital images”. Similarly, Face Recognition is the science of teaching machines to recognize people by their faces.
Now let’s talk about hackathon preparation 😏
Before the Hackathon
1. Do your research
Research further about the general concept of Face technology. Google “Face recognition”, read news and blogs and watch Youtube videos and try to understand some of the problems people are solving by using Face recognition systems. Don’t limit your research to anything for now. Ask yourself: What new fields could this technology be used in? Agriculture? Sports? Finance? Security? Think about it.
2. Install necessary software
First of all, you’ll need a text editor. I use VS Code, it’s free and awesome. You may decide to use other editors such as Sublime Text, Atom, Brackets etc. If you code in Java, you could use an IDE like Netbeans or Eclipse.
“What programming language do I need to know?”
- JavaScript
- Python
- Ruby
- C#
- Java
“What can I do with the API??”
We’re gonna post a dedicated post about APIs this week! I promise.
3. Play with some simple Image Processing APIs for fun
It would be good idea to play with some random APIs both to learn how to use an API and to test stuff. I’ve used Clarifai before in Personal projects and you can check it out (though this is NOT the API that we’ll use in FACE 2017).
4. Pack your bag
We’ll have bean bags, lots of food and drink at the venue, but if you’d like you can bring sleeping bag. It’s a 48-hour event so bringing personal items such as toothbrush, extra set of clothes etc are advised. Feel free to bring your resume or CV, you may end up getting a job/internship offer at the event 😎
During the Hackathon
1. Talk to as many strangers as you can!
Networking is an important part of every hackathon. Connect with more students and mentors (people from industry and academia), exchange numbers and social media accounts, take selfies and don’t forget #FACE2017 hashtag 😉
2. Attend workshops
There will be several amazing seminars going on Saturday 18 November. Don’t miss them! (I can’t explain more 😜). These talks will be done by companies that are building state of the art AI products. Do chat with the speakers, you may end up getting an awesome AI internship!
3. Think different
Don’t limit yourself to a small group of ideas. You don’t wanna come up with an idea that you can’t execute in 48 hours, but you don’t need to choose an average idea either. Be creative, and find solutions for real problems, while making sure you can build a working prototype in 48 hours. Rm8000 prize belongs to the team that offers a great solution to a real problem.
Don’t create a problem and then solve it.
4. Take breaks, laugh, eat and drink enough
I do it more than enough actually, just make sure you’re having fun. Don’t let the competition consume you and your learning process. This hackathon isn’t the end, it’s the beginning. Stay hydrated, and help us finish all the food and drinks please :D
(Caution: please control your caffeine intake during the event. Drinking too much coffee or too many RedBulls is not advised.)
5. Practice great teamwork
Your team members might have different skills. Programming, marketing, design, leadership, pitching, etc. Recognize your differences and use it in your favor. Don’t ignore anyone’s opinion, your friend’s silly idea might be your winner idea.
6. Get some SLEEP
Sleep isn’t for the weak, sleep is for humans!! 48 hours is a long time, please do get sufficient sleep when you need it, we love you and don’t want you to see you pass out!
