Road Safety Hackathon 2026: IIT Madras launches AI road safety hackathon 2026 for students; check details and participation rules

Road Safety Hackathon 2026: The Road Safety Hackathon 2026 has been announced by the Centre of Excellence for Road Safety and RBG Labs at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras, continuing its focus on the theme “AI in Road Safety”. The initiative builds on earlier editions and aims to expand the role of artificial intelligence in addressing road safety concerns across India.The hackathon was officially launched at the India AI Impact Summit 2026, placing road safety within the country’s wider AI transformation agenda. Organisers stated that the programme seeks to encourage practical, scalable and data-driven solutions that can be adopted within governance and enforcement systems.Problem statements and solution tracksParticipants are required to select one of three problem statements: DriveLegal, RoadWatch and RoadSoS. DriveLegal is designed to provide location-specific information on traffic laws, violations and fine schedules by integrating national, state and local regulations to improve compliance.RoadWatch focuses on enabling citizens to monitor road conditions, track public spending on infrastructure and report issues to authorities, promoting transparency and accountability. RoadSoS offers location-based access to trauma centres, ambulance services, vehicle rescue support, police stations and emergency contacts during accidents to reduce response time.• Direct link to apply online for the IITM AI road safety hackathon 2026Eligibility and participation structureThe competition is open to students, engineers and technology enthusiasts, with a minimum age requirement of 15. No professional qualifications are necessary. Participants may register individually or in teams, with no restriction on team size.Each participant or team can submit one entry through the Unstop platform and must choose only one of the three problem statements. Submissions must include code in any programming language, a seven-slide presentation including “Welcome” and “Thank you”, and a document detailing software packages and assumptions.Selection process and awardsShortlisted teams will be invited to present their solutions before a live jury at the IITM campus, with schedules to be shared with qualifying participants. Winning teams will receive cash prizes of Rs 50,000, Rs 30,000 and Rs 20,000 for first, second and third places respectively.All participants who complete Stage 1 submissions will receive participation certificates, and selected individuals may be considered for internship or job opportunities.Timeline and registrationRegistrations opened on March 11, 2026, and will close on April 15, 2026, while submissions are scheduled until May 31, 2026. Entries are accepted exclusively through the Unstop platform for all applicants.