ANNAM.AI — India's first Centre of Excellence (CoE) for AI in Agriculture has launched HACK CORE 2026. The centre is hosted at IIT Ropar under the Ministry of Education, Government of India. It runs this national hackathon in partnership with Syngenta and Google.
The hackathon invites students, researchers, developers, startups, and early-career technologists from across India. Participants must have a passion for AI, data science, agriculture, or sustainable innovation.
Prizes and Rewards
- Italy Research Trip - The winning team visits Syngenta's Research Centre in Atessa, Italy, for a first-hand look at cutting-edge biologicals research.
- Google Cloud Credits - Winning teams get Google Cloud credits with access to cloud infrastructure, data tools, and AI platforms.
- Expert Mentorship - All participants get mentorship from agronomy experts at ANNAM.AI and Syngenta.
- Hands-On Research - Participants get ground-level research opportunities and direct knowledge exchange with industry leaders.
What the Experts Say
"As agriculture is now moving to more sustainable and climate-resilient practices, biological products are emerging as a key alternative to traditional crop protection solutions. By harnessing AI-tech, we innovators have an opportunity to help farmers improve productivity while enhancing environmental sustainability. By partnering with the world's leading agricultural innovation company, Syngenta, HACK CORE 2026 brings together India's brightest innovators to build practical, technology-led solutions that can help solve some of the most pressing challenges faced by farmers today."
— Dr. Pushpendra P. Singh, Project Director, ANNAM.AI, IIT Ropar
Alignment With Government Vision
India is moving towards a technology-led agricultural future. HACK CORE 2026 supports this direction.
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The hackathon aligns with the Government of India's push to use technology in agriculture. It backs the country's efforts in digital farming. The aim is to drive smarter decisions, higher productivity, and more sustainable practices for farmers all over India.
Policy alignment highlights:
- Supports the Government of India's vision to leverage technology in agriculture
- Advances digital agriculture through AI-backed innovation
- Promotes smarter decision-making for Indian farmers
- Drives greater productivity and more sustainable farming
- Improves farmer livelihoods through technology adoption
How to Apply
The hackathon is open to everyone students, researchers, developers, startups, and independent innovators from across India.
Applications close on July 21, 2026 | Register at annam.ai/hack-core
Participants can explore the challenge tracks and access all competition details on the official website.
