Music Technology Hackathon: Build the Future of Creative Tools
Date: 22–23 August 2026
Location: Montreal, QC, Canada
In partnership with: MUTEK
Join us in Montreal for a 2-day, hands-on music technology hackathon, in partnership with MUTEK.
For this edition, musician, YouTuber, and creative-tools builder Andrew Huang joins us as a guest juror with a challenge for the event: how can we help artists get more out of the work they've already made? Most creators sit on years of unfinished ideas, sketches, stems, and field recordings — material that could fuel new projects if it were easier to surface, navigate, and reuse. Teams are invited to explore how technology can turn that personal archive into an active collaborator, rather than a folder we forget about. Sponsor-led challenges will run alongside, so teams can pick the direction that fits them best.
This event brings together developers, artists, researchers, product thinkers, and sound obsessives to prototype new tools for music creation, performance and listening. Whether you're a seasoned audio DSP engineer, a web developer, a performer, or a student just getting started in music tech, you're welcome. Participation is open to adults aged 18+ only.
Teams will have two intense days to turn ideas into working prototypes. Expect a mix of rapid ideation, mentoring, deep focus time, and informal sharing with peers — all set against the backdrop of Montreal's world-class electronic music and digital arts scene.
You can arrive with a project idea or form a team on site. We'll help match participants into small groups (typically 3–4 people) so that each team has a blend of skills across coding, sound, design, and user experience.
Throughout the weekend, mentors from Music Hackspace and industry partners will be available to support you on topics such as audio programming, generative AI, UX for creative tools, and taking prototypes toward real-world products.
Challenges
MuseHub Challenge
Build a creative music product that could launch on MuseHub
What teams can build
How to Get Started
Audiotool Challenge
Build a creative music product that could launch on Audiotool
What teams can build
How to Get Started
Themes & Example Projects
Creative Tools for Musicians
- Performance tools that extend instruments on stage
- Composition assistants and idea-generation workflows
- Experimental interfaces for live, collaborative improvisation
Electronic Music & Club Culture
- Tools for DJs, producers, and live electronic performers
- New approaches to generative and modular composition
- Interfaces for immersive audio-visual performances
Accessibility & Inclusion
- Interfaces for disabled musicians and new audiences
- Tools that lower the barrier to music making
- Collaborative environments for remote or hybrid teams
New Listening Experiences
- Adaptive and interactive listening formats
- Spatial and immersive audio experiments
- Playful tools for discovering music in new ways
Schedule at a Glance
Day 1 – Saturday 22 August
- Welcome, introductions and overview of the hackathon
- Team formation and idea pitches
- Hacking sessions with mentor support
- Evening check-in and informal demos
Day 2 – Sunday 23 August
- Final hacking sprint and polishing
- Public demos and jury presentations
- Feedback, awards, and next steps
Exact times and venue details will be announced closer to the event and shared with all registered participants. All times will be in Eastern Time (ET), the local Montreal timezone.
Who Should Join
The hackathon is open to the wider Montreal and international music technology community. You don't need prior hackathon experience, only curiosity and a willingness to collaborate.
- Producers, performers, and composers looking to prototype new tools and workflows
- Audio and music technologists
- Students and researchers in music, CS, and related fields
- Designers, product managers, and UX researchers
- Electronic musicians and artists excited by the intersection of tech and culture
- Anyone excited about building tools for music
You don't need to code to be central to a team. We're explicitly looking for musicians and artists to act as creative leads, defining problems, curating sounds and workflows, and guiding the product vision.
We'll help you find a team that matches your interests and skills so you can focus on building something meaningful over the weekend.
Prizes & Opportunities
Main Prize: Present at the MUTEK Festival
The winning team will be invited to present their work at the MUTEK festival, one of the world's leading festivals for digital creativity and electronic music. This is a rare opportunity to showcase your creation in front of an international audience of artists, technologists, and music industry professionals.
Recognition & Showcases
A jury including representatives from Music Hackspace and industry partners will select standout projects to highlight. Selected teams may be invited to share their work in follow-up showcases, talks, or blog features.
Pathways Beyond the Weekend
The goal is not just a weekend demo, but to help promising ideas move toward real-world impact—whether as research tools, open-source projects, or commercial products. We'll share opportunities for continuing your work with the broader Music Hackspace community.
Mentoring
Winning teams can receive two mentoring sessions with one of our mentors, to help refine your project and next steps after the hackathon.
Jury
We're excited to welcome Andrew Huang, Michele Darling, and JB Thiebaut to the jury panel, where they'll evaluate projects across creativity, technical execution, and real-world product potential. More jurors to follow.
Andrew Huang
Andrew Huang is a musician, video creator, and bestselling author who experiments with unique approaches to making music. He's best known for sharing his ideas and processes on YouTube, where he's amassed over 2 million subscribers. His other work includes scoring commercials, designing music software and hardware, and an eclectic discography spanning everything from rock to rap to electronic to classical.
Michele Darling
Michele Darling is the chair of the Electronic Production and Design Department at Berklee College of Music. An accomplished sound designer, composer, recording engineer, and educator, she brings a unique combination of professional experience and passion for electronic music and sound design to our jury panel. Darling worked for many years as part of an Emmy Award–winning production team at Sesame Workshop, composing music and creating sound design for Muppets characters. Her career includes sound work for animated television shows such as Pokémon and Yu-Gi-Oh!. She is also a founding member of Aerostatic, composing audio environments for films, installations, and music performances featured in galleries and festivals worldwide.
JB Thiebaut
Jean-Baptiste “JB” Thiebaut is CEO of Music Hackspace and Chordline Ventures. He holds a PhD in computer music from Queen Mary University of London and built a career bridging R&D, product, and community in music technology. He has led programmes and teams focused on creative coding and music technology education, supporting thousands of artists and developers to ship new tools, prototypes, and products. His work sits at the intersection of research, hands-on making, and ecosystem building across the global music tech community.
Code of Conduct
We are committed to a welcoming, inclusive, and harassment-free environment for everyone taking part in the hackathon.
Please read and follow our Hackathon Code of Conduct.
Intellectual Property (IP)
Who owns what you build
We want teams to build boldly, and we want this to be clear from day one:
- Your team keeps 100% ownership of what you create during the hackathon.
- Music Hackspace, MUTEK, and sponsors do not take ownership of your project IP.
- You're free to continue developing your project after the event (open-source it, commercialise it, publish it, etc.).
Using sponsor APIs, SDKs, or tools
Many teams will use sponsor-provided APIs or developer platforms. That's welcome — just keep in mind:
- You still own your project code, design, content, and ideas.
- Your use of a sponsor's API or SDK is subject to that sponsor's licence and terms of use.
- This means your project may depend on that sponsor technology for some features (for example API access, usage limits, commercial terms, attribution requirements).
In simple terms: you own what you build; sponsors own their platforms. If you want to ship your project beyond the hackathon, check the relevant sponsor terms first.
Team contributions
- By joining a team, participants agree that team members can use and present the shared hackathon project or demo.
- If your team plans to continue after the event, we strongly recommend agreeing in writing on ownership splits, licensing, and future use.
Organiser
Partners
This event is organised in partnership with MUTEK, an international organisation dedicated to the dissemination and development of digital creativity in music, art, and technology.
Sponsors
Special thanks to our sponsors for making this hackathon possible. See the Challenges section above for full details on each track.
How to Take Part
Capacity is limited. Buying a ticket through the registration form secures your place while spaces remain available. We'll follow up with details on what to bring and how to prepare.
You can arrive with a project idea or come solo — we'll help you find collaborators on site. Whether you're a developer, musician, designer, or researcher, there's a place for you on a team.