Diving into NYC datasets: Winners from Hex’s First NYC Hackathon

Last week, we hosted our first-ever NYC hackathon in partnership with Snowflake. And what an event it was! 60 data professionals across 20 teams competed in a fast-paced environment to build the most impactful data app.

Folks were prompted to solve the following challenges:

Contestants had 2 hours to build out their apps and then present to a panel of 5 judges. Check out our winners below!

🥇 Should We Roll Out Waymo in NYC?

Bennett and Pete rigorously compared the increase in safety amongst the different cities Waymo has been operating in. Their final proposal was was phase Waymo into surrounding NYC areas and closely work with Waymo before rolling it out in high-density zones like Manhattan. See the project here.

🥈 Agoraphobe’s Guide to New York

Overwhelmed by the big city? Jackie, Catherine, and Vincent created a data app that allows you to find the best restaurants, not just by their reviews. Their algorithm considered safety, parking, restaurant violations, and more to ensure you a wonderful experience! See the project here.

🥉 NYC Parking Pal & Congestion Pricing: Success or Failure? (Tie!)

Tired of your finding parking spots? How about hoping your meter doesn’t run out? Worry no more! Just enter your destination and how long you plan to be there and NYC Parking Pal will provide you a detailed on when and where to park! See the project here.

Congestion pricing has been a contentious topic, but has it actually reduced the city's traffic demands? Has it made the streets safer and less accident-prone? Nathan and Luke dive deep to explore this policy's impact. See the project here.

Thank you to all the contestants and congratulations to all our winners (pictured below)! Watching teams build working apps in just around 2 hours? That’s the kind of data magic we live for 🌟

Want in next time? Keep an eye on hex.tech/events and come say hi.