STARK
MMCY
50,000 ETB toward logistics, catering and running the event
Sponsors & partners
Your product, in thehands of real builders
This hackathon is also a chance for participating companies to put their products directly into the hands of talented Ethiopian builders.
Lead partners
04
Platform partner
04
Partner
04
Why partner
What sponsoring actually buys
Not a logo on a banner. Usage, feedback, and developers who leave the hackathon already building on your platform.
Platform promotion
Partner companies receive exposure throughout the hackathon and have their platforms introduced to a community of developers, creators, and innovators.
Real product adoption
Participants are encouraged, and where applicable required, to use sponsor platforms while building. That means real developers using your product to build real projects: meaningful traffic, feedback, and potential long-term users.
On the table
What each one is putting in
Cash, the running costs, credits, hosting, internships and a room for the last day. This is what backing the round actually buys you.
MMCY
50,000 ETB toward logistics, catering and running the event
We are super happy to announce that MMCY is partnering with the STARK Official Hackathon!
MMCY is supporting the hackathon with 50,000 ETB, helping cover the essential costs that make the event possible, including logistics, catering, and other event-related expenses.
This support allows us to create a better experience for everyone taking part, giving builders the space, resources, and environment they need to focus on what matters most: building.
We're incredibly grateful to MMCY for supporting the STARK community and investing in the builders, developers, and innovators taking part in the hackathon.
Thank you, MMCY, for helping us bring STARK to life and supporting the next generation of Ethiopian builders!
Shega
Media coverage, video and photo production on announcement day, and paid internships for the top 3 team members
Shega is backing announcement day of the STARK Official Hackathon with media coverage of the event, video and photo production on the day, and paid internships with Shega's Product division for the top 3 team members. They are seeing what you are building and who is doing the most work.
Announcement day is Sunday, October 11, at the ALX Capstone Building in Lideta.
Shega is an Ethiopian information and technology company that offers in-depth insights into Ethiopia's economy through integrated media, data and intelligence. Its media spans web, newsletters, audio and video, alongside a data and intelligence platform focused on technology and finance, with a monthly reach of 10 million people.
Thanks to Shega for backing the dev community. This won't be the last time we work together.
iceaddis
25,000 / 15,000 / 10,000 ETB to the top three
iceaddis is Addis Ababa's innovation hub and startup incubator, a space where Ethiopian founders, developers and creators come together to build, test and launch their ideas. Through its incubation programmes, events and community, iceaddis has spent years helping young innovators turn early projects into real companies.
For the hackathon, iceaddis is backing the entire 50,000 ETB cash prize pool: 25,000 ETB for first place, 15,000 ETB for second and 10,000 ETB for third.
Thank you, iceaddis, for putting real money behind the best work.
Scholarxiv
GO and Plus subscriptions, around $250, plus the Papers API and MCP
ScholarXIV is an AI-powered research platform for discovering, exploring and working with millions of research papers. Builders can wire it straight into their own applications and agents through its Papers API and MCP, which opens up research search, paper context and collections.
Every team will use ScholarXIV to research and document their ideation. Teams can earn extra points for integrating the MCP or the Papers API creatively.
The top teams also receive ScholarXIV GO and Plus subscriptions, worth around $250 combined.
Voxide
Promo codes for everyone, plus Pro credits for the top three
Voxide brings voice interaction and AI agents to web applications, letting you build things that listen, speak, click, type, navigate and search.
Every participant gets promo codes for free sessions, and you can build in local languages. The top three teams each receive three Voxide Pro credits, worth about $90 in total.
EthioDeploy
Three Pro accounts for a month, about 7,500 ETB
EthioDeploy makes it easy to deploy and host a project automatically. Connect a GitHub repo, push your code, and it builds and goes live with no server setup, no SSH and no YAML.
It handles automatic stack detection, branch previews and built-in Postgres and Redis, and it lets Ethiopian developers pay in Birr without needing an international card.
For the hackathon, EthioDeploy is providing three Pro accounts for one month to the winning teams, worth around 7,500 ETB.
links.et
Three months of Developer Perks for three people, about 9,000 ETB
links.et provides a simple API for verifying Ethiopian bank and wallet receipts, which makes it far easier to build products that work with local payments. It covers 17 Ethiopian banks and wallets.
For the hackathon, links.et is providing three months of Developer Perks for three people, including exclusive access to Odit features, worth around 9,000 ETB.
PhonoFilm
Five yearly Premium accounts
PhonoFilm is a movie and TV streaming platform for discovering films, series and anime, with ratings, watchlists, collections and personalised recommendations.
For the hackathon, PhonoFilm is providing five yearly Premium accounts to the winning teams.
Siltawi
Five two-month internships, with real jobs on the other side
Siltawi is a learning platform focused on helping students and beginners build real skills through practical, project-based learning, training, internships and career development.
For the hackathon, Siltawi is providing five internship positions lasting two months, with the potential of real employment for those who do well.
Thank you, Siltawi, for creating opportunities that outlast the hackathon itself.
AI Programming
AI Programming
A VPS with a month of hosting, plus a domain for a year
AI Programming helps Ethiopian students and developers learn AI, software development and modern technologies through practical resources, tutorials and developer-focused content.
For the hackathon, AI Programming is providing one VPS with one month of hosting, valued at roughly 15,000 ETB, along with a domain registered for a year.
Thank you, AI Programming, for supporting Ethiopian developers.
ALX
The room for announcement day, free of charge
ALX is a community in its own right, and they are the reason announcement day has a home.
ALX is giving us their physical hub for the day the winners are announced, free of charge: an exclusive event on 11 October where the round closes in person, in the room, in front of everyone.
They have also opened the hackathon to their own community, which is where a good number of you are arriving from.
Thank you, ALX, for hosting the end of the STARK Official Hackathon.
Build on what they've put up
The requirements are built around these platforms. Using them well is part of how teams are judged.