HackFest 2025 Journey: Crafting a Scalable App and Securing 1st Runner-Up

Overview

• The Beginning
• The Problem Statement
• Solution Brainstorming
• The Hackathon
• The Result
• Some Images from the Hackathon

The Beginning

So it all started when Anirban Majumder one of old friend and hackathon teammate reached out to me with this idea of participating in HackFest 2025 IIT Dhanbad, a 36-hour hackathon organized by IIT(ISM) Dhanbad. I was unsure that will we get selected or not as there are 1000+ applicants from all over the India and only 125 teams will be selected . But I thought why not give it a try and applied with a team of 5 members including me. After a week we got the confirmation email that we are selected among the 125 teams.

The Problem Statement

Once the team is formed, we started checking out the problem statements and selected Problem Statement 6 which focused on creating a mobile-first solution for event organizers. The challenge was to build a real-time ticket sales tracking app that would provide event organizers with live analytics, audience insights, and smart recommendations to maximize their revenue and marketing ROI. The core issue was that most event organizers were struggling with static reports and lack of real-time visibility into their sales performance, making it difficult to make data-driven decisions on the go.

Solution Brainstorming

Once we selected the problem statement, I immediately dove into brainstorming the solution architecture. The key challenge was building a scalable system that could handle real-time data and analytics while providing an intuitive user experience.

Initial Vision

I quickly sketched out a rough architecture diagram and wireframes in Excalidraw to visualize our multi-platform solution:

Core Components:

• Mobile App: Event organizers can create events, manage tickets, and access real-time analytics
• Auto-generated Event Websites: Dynamic websites created instantly when organizers enter event details
• AI-Powered Chatbot: Context-aware assistant for each event to handle audience queries
• Real-time Analytics Dashboard: Live insights on ticket sales and audience demographics

The Solution Flow

1. Event Creation: Organizers use the mobile app to input event details
2. Website Generation: A unique event website is automatically created and hosted
3. Ticket Sales: Organizers share the link/QR code to start selling tickets
4. Real-time Monitoring: Live analytics and insights are available in the app
5. AI Support: Chatbot handles audience queries and reports issues to organizers

Key Features We Planned

• Multi-platform Architecture: Mobile app for organizers, web interface for ticket buyers
• Real-time Data Processing: Live analytics and ticket sales tracking
• AI Integration: Context-aware chatbot with full event knowledge
• Automated Website Generation: No coding required for event pages
• Comprehensive Analytics: Audience demographics, sales patterns, and insights

The initial diagram was rough, but it helped our team understand the application flow and how different components would interact. As we progressed through development, we continuously refined and added features to make the solution more robust and scalable.

So as per our tech stack we chose Expo for app side and Next.js for the web part and for backend and data processing we chose Supabase as our backend as it provides real time database and authentication out of the box and also it has a very good integration with Next js and Expo . For Ai part we used Vercel AI SDK with Gemini api . So our team consisted of 5 members including me(App Developer + Full Stack developer ) 2 fullstack developer and 2 frontend developers . But we only know about web technologies so meantime i started learning react native and expo as i was leading the development the app part also learnt it quickly built some demo apps and understand how expo and expo eas works .

The Hackathon

April 4th marked the beginning of our 36-hour coding marathon. We embarked on our journey from Kolkata to Dhanbad, arriving at the IIT(ISM) campus by afternoon. The excitement was palpable as we joined hundreds of other participants from across India.

The hackathon officially commenced in the institute's auditorium with inspiring speeches from the director and dean of IIT(ISM) Dhanbad. Their words about innovation, collaboration, and pushing boundaries set the perfect tone for what lay ahead. Following the opening remarks, we received the official rules and regulations, and then it was time to dive into action.

With the clock ticking, we had exactly 36 hours to transform our ideas into a working solution. The pressure was intense, but our team was ready. We quickly divided responsibilities among our five team members, ensuring each person had clear ownership of their components while maintaining seamless collaboration throughout the development process.

Onboarding Screeen and Authentication

I started working on the app part created a beautiful Onboarding Animation using Swamansion React Native Reanimated and did setup of the Authtenciation of the app using Supabase and Expo Auth session . Meanwhile other team members started working on the web part and Ai agent part

Manage Events and Real Time Analytics

After logging in, users can access the Events tab where all their created events are listed. By clicking on any event card, they can view comprehensive event details including banner, name, description, ticket sales details, attendee information, and various analytics. For real-time insights, event creators can monitor live traffic on their dynamically generated event website.

Within the event details page, users can access comprehensive analytics including audience demographics such as gender distribution, age distribution, top attendee locations, and AI-generated registration insights.

Under the promotions section, users can view their custom website link and QR code, which they can share across social media platforms to start selling tickets. They can also create custom discount codes to attract more attendees to their events.

In the Event settings, users can edit event details, integrate payment gateways for ticket sales, and enable or disable the AI chatbot for their specific event.

The Tickets section allows users to create different ticket types for their events such as General Admission, VIP, Early Bird, etc. They can set prices and quantities for each ticket type and track total tickets sold and revenue generated. AI provides smart suggestions for pricing and ticket types based on event type, location, and audience buying patterns.

Event Creation Flow

For event creation, users can click the floating action button on the Events tab, which redirects to the Event Creation Flow. Here, users can enter comprehensive event details including event name, description, banner image, event type, location, date and time, and ticket details such as ticket type, price, and quantity. They can also add social media links and select custom questions to ask the audience during ticket purchasing to gather more analytics about their attendees. Users can also enable or disable the AI chatbot for their event.

At the end of the process, users receive a link to their event website and QR code, which they can share with their audience to start selling tickets immediately.

Dedicated Analytics Dashboard and Feedback received from Ai Chatbot

We also added a dedicated Analytics Dashboard in the app where event creators can view all analytics in one centralized location. This includes age group distribution, total tickets sold, total revenue, graphs of ticket sales over time, languages spoken by the audience, how the audience discovered the event, visitor-to-buyer ratio, average rating, and devices used by people to access the event website.

Additionally, we included a feedback section where event creators can view feedback received from the AI chatbot regarding any issues faced by the audience during ticket purchasing or other queries related to the event.

Event Website and Ai Chatbot

The main purpose of creating this as a website rather than an app is to ensure maximum accessibility for the audience. Users can book tickets directly from the URL or by scanning the QR code without needing to download any app, making it more accessible for everyone.

The event website is dynamically generated based on the event details entered by the event creator during the event creation flow. The website includes all essential details such as event name, description, banner image, event type, location, date and time, ticket details including ticket type, price, and quantity, and social media links of the event creator.

The website also features an integrated AI chatbot where the audience can ask any queries regarding the event and report issues related to ticket purchasing or other event-related questions. The AI chatbot has full context of the event and can answer any queries about the event. It can also report any issues to the event organizer in real-time.

Here are some screenshots of the event website and AI chatbot in action:

The Result

After 36 hours of non-stop coding and working on the project, we successfully completed and submitted our solution before the deadline. Following submission, there was a presentation round where we had to present our project in front of the judges and other participants. We showcased our project, explaining the features and functionalities of the app along with the tech stack used for building it.

After the presentation, there was a Q&A session where judges asked us questions about the project, and we answered them to the best of our knowledge. Following a lunch break, the results were announced. We secured the 1st runner-up position among 500+ teams, which was a tremendous achievement for us. We were extremely happy and proud of our accomplishment, and we learned a great deal from this hackathon experience. View our official achievement certificate here.

Some Images from the Hackathon

Here are some memorable moments captured during our HackFest 2025 journey at IIT(ISM) Dhanbad:

The 36-hour journey was intense but incredibly rewarding. These images capture the essence of teamwork, dedication, and the joy of building something meaningful together. From late-night coding sessions to the excitement of securing 1st runner-up position, every moment was worth it!

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