HanoiForge
07

How It Works

Five steps from an idea to the world stage, and the qualification pathway that defines the field.

07Five steps

How It Works

01STEP 1 / 5

Register

Create your participant profile.

02STEP 2 / 5

Build

Take an idea and turn it into a working prototype.

03STEP 3 / 5

Submit

Submit the required project information.

04STEP 4 / 5

Present

Demonstrate what you built.

05STEP 5 / 5

Compete

Projects are evaluated on innovation, engineering quality and impact.

08From field to champion

Qualification Funnel

~2,500
REGISTRATIONS
FIELD
300+
ONLINE SEMIFINAL TEAMS
SELECTION STAGE
3
FINALISTS
SELECTION STAGE
1
GLOBAL CHAMPION
OUTCOME
09How builds are scored

Judging + Evaluation

CRITERIA 01CORE

Technical Depth

How well is the system engineered?

CRITERIA 02CORE

Innovation

How original is the idea?

CRITERIA 03CORE

Functionality

Does it actually work?

CRITERIA 04CORE

Impact

Could it solve a meaningful problem?

CRITERIA 05SUPPORT

Design

Is the product understandable and usable?

CRITERIA 06SUPPORT

Presentation

Can the team explain and demonstrate the solution?

Expert network

Evaluation is conducted through the official expert network — Y Combinator, Antler, research experts, technical experts, industry leaders and startup founders — under the published evaluation model. Judge assignments are drawn from the expert network each cycle.

EXPERT PANEL
Y COMBINATORANTLERRESEARCH EXPERTSTECHNICAL EXPERTSINDUSTRY LEADERSSTARTUP FOUNDERS
Participant workshop during the HanoiForge 2026 registration phase
PARTICIPANT WORKSHOP · REGISTRATION PHASE
Participant profile

HanoiForge is positioned for high-school through college and university-level builders. Teams bring ideas, build real prototypes, submit their project information and present their systems to the evaluation network.