Imperial inventors come together for ‘Summer of Hack’

Imperial College Advanced Hackspace is launching a summer-long programme of activities for hackers, makers and innovators across the College.

My Summer of Hack, which will run from 3rd of July to the 29th of September 2018, will offer a host of opportunities for the Imperial community turn their innovative ideas into a reality - including grants, hacker-in-residence opportunities, and an exciting new competition.

Breakthrough ideas

Imperial College Advanced Hackspace (ICAH) is a unique community of over 2,500 makers, hackers, inventors and entrepreneurs from across the College. It provides access to specialist manufacturing equipment, training, and a network of like-minded members, to help anyone at the College turn their ideas into real breakthrough prototypes and solutions.

There are hackspaces across the South Kensington Campus, and last year the College opened a bespoke workshop at The Invention Rooms in White City. This new facility, one of the largest of its kind in the world, contains a fully equipped bio-lab, alongside state-of-the-art 3D printing, electronics, metalwork and woodwork equipment

Level Up! competition

The Level Up! competition is a summer-long hackathon, which tasks participants with developing innovative installations, furniture and exhibits for a soon-to-open breakout space above the Advanced Hackspace at the Invention Rooms.

Selected teams will be given up to £1000 to make their ideas using the Advanced Hackspace facilities, and the winning entries will be installed in the new space and will receive a cash prize.

Summer opportunities

As part of the Summer of Hack, Imperial College Advanced Hackspace (ICAH) will be offering Summer Boost Grants of up to £500 for staff and students wishing to develop an idea over the summer months. Previous boost grants have funding projects ranging from a low-cost neonatal incubator made from cardboard, a vaccine cooling and delivery system, and a 3D printer for ceramics.

ICAH are also inviting Hacker-in-Residence applications for the summer. The Hacker-in-Residence programme is open to Imperial alumni, and provides them with opportunities to access ICAH workshops, facilities and expertise.

Professor Oscar Ces, co-director of Imperial College Advanced Hackspace, said: “Imperial College Advanced Hackspace is a hotbed of creativity and innovation, where hackers, inventers and entrepreneurs from across all corners of the College come together to turn their ideas into a reality. This summer is the perfect opportunity to get involved.”

My Summer of Hack will launch on the 3rd of July from 6:30 pm with a networking event at the Invention Rooms.