Code4Compassion 2025

Silicon Valley's Premier AI Hackathon for Animal Protection

February 26, 2025 • 12:00 PM - 6:00 PM

Sports Basement, San Francisco

C4C25 is Silicon Valley's premier AI hackathon dedicated to animal welfare, bringing together leading AI developers and animal advocates to build practical tech solutions for animal protection. The event serves two crucial purposes: launching the first-ever suite of AI models specifically trained for animal advocacy, and creating working prototypes that animal organizations can implement immediately.

This isn't just another hackathon. It's positioned strategically between EAG Bay Area and the AI for Animals Conference, creating a direct pipeline from technical innovation to real-world deployment. Animal advocacy organizations have already submitted specific technical needs, and Open Paws will release powerful new AI tools - developed over the past year with substantial compute investment - that teams can use to meet these needs.

Event Highlights

  • 🧑‍💻 50 in-person developers + 100+ online participants expected

  • 🌐 1,000+ online viewers expected

  • 🤝 International organizing team across 3 continents

  • 💻 Spacious workspace with fast WiFi

Investigations

  • • OSINT integration

  • • Data collection automation

  • • Evidence processing pipelines

  • • Investigation workflow optimization

Predictions

  • • Message effectiveness prediction

  • • A/B testing automation

  • • Audience response analysis

  • • Campaign ROI optimization

Why It Matters

  • ✅ 20+ organizations waitlisted for AI solutions

  • 🚀 $350,000+ in compute already invested

  • 🔗 Direct pipeline to real-world deployment

Challenge Tracks

Choose from four high-impact focus areas where AI can revolutionize animal advocacy. Each track addresses critical needs identified by our partner organizations and comes with specialized datasets and tools to accelerate development.

Automations

  • • Social media campaign automation

  • • Email outreach personalization

  • • Content generation and adaptation

  • • Custom advocacy chatbots

Support Systems

  • • Mentorship matching algorithms

  • • Resource recommendation engines

  • • Impact measurement tools

  • • Volunteer engagement optimization

Technical Resources Provided

Choose from four high-impact focus areas where AI can revolutionize animal advocacy. Each track addresses critical needs identified by our partner organizations and comes with specialized datasets and tools to accelerate development.

AI Models

  • • Pre-trained LLMs and VLMs (1B to 405B parameters)

  • • Fine-tuned models (11B to 90B parameters)

  • • Multilingual campaign performance prediction models

  • • Animal alignment ranking models

Data & Support

  • • Dedicated cloud compute for each team

  • • Real-time mentorship from AI experts

  • • Comprehensive datasets relevant to animal advocacy

  • • Full technical documentation and workshops

Pre-Event Timeline

Follow this preparation timeline to ensure you're ready to make the most of the hackathon. We'll provide support and resources at each stage to help you build your team and prepare your development environment.

February 12 (2 weeks prior)

Team formation and project ideation begins

February 19 (1 week prior)

Technical documentation distribution

February 25 (1 day prior)

Environment setup and testing

Event Day Schedule

The hackathon is structured to maximize development time while ensuring proper support and presentation opportunities. Mentors will be available throughout the day to help teams overcome technical challenges.

12:00 PM

Quick kickoff and challenge overview

12:30 PM

Hacking begins with ongoing mentorship sessions

5:15 PM

Project submissions

5:30 PM

Demonstrations and judging

6:00 PM

Networking reception

Ready to Make an Impact?

Join us in building AI solutions that will transform animal advocacy. Applications are open for both in-person and remote participants.

Who Should Apply?

  • AI/ML engineers, software developers, and no-code builders

  • Experience with ML frameworks, APIs, and/or AI tools

  • Interest in applying AI technology to real-world problems

  • Passion for animal protection and using technology for social good

Application deadline: February 1st, 2025