OPTIMAS

Rules & Eligiblity

Who can enter & what's allowed

Rules & Eligibility

By registering or submitting, you agree to these Rules. They govern both phases of the OPTIMAS x NeSy 2025 Neuro-Symbolic Reasoning Hackathon. If anything here conflicts with local law, local law prevails. We may make reasonable updates for clarity or legal compliance (we'll post changes on this site/Discord). All deadlines are AoE (UTC-12).

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Who can Participate

Language: English

  • Professionals & Students

    Professionals & Students in AI/ML, NLP, Knowledge graphs, reasoning, data/graph engineering, operations research.

  • 1-5 Members

    Teams of one to five members collaborate, innovate, and compete together. (Team setup will be live soon; solo entries are always allowed.)

  • Phase 1: Design First

    Phase One focuses on a design-first approach, without requiring production code.

  • Phase 2: Finalist

    Phase Two challenges finalists to develop and demonstrate a functional prototype.

Tracks & Scope

This is a Neurosymbolic event. Purely procedural/SQL-only entries are out of scope. Your solution must use the provided ontology and show explicit reasoning via classes / properties / relations.

Choose one or more of the following tracks (submit one Approach per chosen track):

  • Natural-Language → Ontology Querying
  • Causal Reasoning for Disruptions (Deterministic ± Probabilistic)
  • Ontology Evolution from Integration Data

All tracks follow the Air-gapped rule: submissions used for judging must run locally with no internet access.

What You Must Submit

Approach

(Due Oct 21, 23:59)

Phase 1
  • Approach PDF (3-5 pages): problem framing; method (how ontology + AI/LLMs are used); system diagram; safety/privacy; feasibility & build plan.
  • Worked examples (≥3) with explicit reasoning paths (which classes/relations/filters).
  • Prompts / Pseudocode / Rules / DSL (enough to reproduce the reasoning).
  • Repo link (optional now; required if you become a finalist).
  • Short video (optional, ≤3 min).

Build (Finalists Only)

(Due Oct 27, 23:59)

Phase 2
  • Private repository (not public): grant read access to organizers/judges; include a README, setup/run steps, and license/attribution for any third-party components.
  • Runnable demo/notebook and evaluation results on the provided datasets.
  • Video demo (5-7 min) and one-pager (problem, method, results).
  • Any additional items specified in the finalist brief.
  • Offline run proof: Provide setup steps (env/Docker) and local model artifacts (weights, indexes/embeddings) so the demo runs with egress blocked.
  • No external services: Your code must not call hosted LLMs, SaaS vector DBs, or third-party inference APIs during evaluation.
  • Submit early; late entries cannot be accepted.

Use Of Data, Models, And Tools

  • Ontology & seed data:

    Provided in the Resources; treat seed data as synthetic and minimal. Finalists may receive extended data for evaluation.

  • No sensitive data:

    Do not include personal data, or confidential third-party content in any submission.

  • LLMs & AI tools (Air-gapped required):

    Submissions used for judging must run locally/offline. No public LLMs and no internet-dependent services (e.g., OpenAI/Anthropic APIs, hosted vector DBs, telemetry). Package models and indexes with your submission (or provide a local download step we can run before the network is blocked). Allowed local runtimes include PyTorch/TensorFlow/JAX, llama.cpp/vLLM/Ollama, spaCy, local graph/SQL stores, and on-box vector search.

  • Development time:

    You may prototype with hosted tools only if your finalist build ships an equivalent offline path. Approaches that cannot be made local may be deemed ineligible.

  • Network policy & audit

    Finalist repos are evaluated with network egress disabled. Solutions that attempt outbound requests may be disqualified.

  • Third-party content & code

    You are responsible for licenses/permissions. Use only licenses that allow OPTIMAS to use, modify, and commercialize the submission (e.g., MIT/Apache-2.0/BSD). Avoid GPL/AGPL unless explicitly approved in writing.

  • Generalization

    No brittle hard-coding of instance IDs. Methods should generalize across seed and extended datasets.

  • Reproducibility

    Provide prompts/templates/rules or pseudo-code so judges can simulate Phase-1 reasoning. Note any randomness and how seeds are fixed.

Intellectual Property (IP) - OPTIMAS Ownership

  • 1. Ownership of Submissions All submissions, code, designs, models, documentation, and other materials developed by participants during the Hackathon ('Submissions') are and shall remain the exclusive property of Optimas.ai Inc.
    As a condition of entry, participants hereby assign all rights, title, and interest in Submissions to Optimas.ai, including all intellectual property rights worldwide.
  • 2. Background & third-party components: You retain ownership of Background IP and any third-party components you lawfully use. Identify all such components (name, version, license, URL) and ensure their licenses permit OPTIMAS&aspo;s intended use under the license above. Avoid GPL/AGPL unless you understand and accept those terms or have written approval from OPTIMAS
  • 3. No confidential data Do not include personal/sensitive data, or content you lack rights to disclose.
  • 4. Publicity release: You allow OPTIMAS to use your team name, and project title/description in winner lists, blogs, social posts, and event materials. You may likewise reference your participation and link to any materials OPTIMAS makes public.
  • 5. Paperwork: Finalists may be asked to sign a short confirmation of the above license and third-party disclosures before prize payment

Privacy & Data Handling

  • 1. We collect basic registration/submission info to run the event (contact, team, links/files).
  • 2. We do not request personal/sensitive data in your content. If included by mistake, we may delete/redact it.
  • 3. We may store submission metadata for judging and audit. See the site's Privacy Policy for details and contact for data requests.

Approach Phase Criteria

  • 1. A panel of researchers/practitioners will review submissions. Judges may request minor clarifications (no new material).
  • 2. Ties: Broken by higher Ontology reasoning rigor, then AI/LLM & safety, then Feasibility.
  • 3.Decisions are final.

Judging Snapshot

A panel of researchers/practitioners selects the Top 5 finalists.

  • 30%

    Ontology Reasoning Rigor

  • 25%

    AI/LLM Technique & Safety

  • 25%

    Feasibility & Build Plan

  • 10%

    Originality

  • 10%

    Clarity

    • View More

Prizes & Payments

  • Finalist Awards: 5 x US$1,000 per track (selected from Approach submissions; 15 total)
  • Grand Prize: US$10,000 per track (awarded after the Build phase; 3 total).
  • Who gets paid: Prizes are per winning team (not per person). If you register as a solo participant, you are a team of one and receive 100% of the prize (subject to taxes/fees).
  • Payout logistics: For multi-member teams, the prize is paid in one transfer to the team's designated/admin payee; the team is responsible for any internal split. OPTIMAS will not mediate team-split disputes.
  • KYC/Tax: Winners must complete reasonable identity/eligibility checks and any required tax forms (e.g., W-9/W-8BEN).
  • Timing & method: Typically within 30 days of winner verification and signed paperwork, via bank transfer or an agreed digital method. Transfer fees/withholding taxes may be deducted as required by law.
  • If unreachable/ineligible: If a team is ineligible or cannot be reached within a reasonable period (e.g., 14 days), the organizer may select an alternate.

Code Of Conduct

We expect a safe, inclusive environment.

  • 1. Be respectful. No harassment, hate speech, or discrimination toward individuals or groups.
  • 2. Be professional. No spam, brigading, dog-piling, or disruptive conduct in Discord, office hours, or on the site.
  • 3. No cheating or plagiarism. Do not submit others' work, falsify results, fabricate data, or misrepresent model usage.
  • 4. Protect privacy. Do not share sensitive/personal data or private content without permission.
  • 5. Keep discussions technical. Healthy debate is welcome; personal attacks are not.
  • 6. Report concerns quickly. Email ask@optimas.ai or DM an organizer in Discord — we&aspo;ll respond promptly.

Violations may result in warnings, removal from community spaces, disqualification, and—for serious issues—ban from future events.

Disqualification & Prohibited Behaviors

You may be disqualified if you:

  • Miss a deadline or submit content that is unlawful, hateful, unsafe, or violates these Rules
  • Include sensitive data or third-party material you don't have rights to use; ignore required attributions or licenses.
  • Plagiarize, fabricate results, materially misrepresent model usage, or evade required declarations.
  • Leak non-public data to third-party APIs or otherwise violate privacy/security requirements.
  • Attempt to influence judges, sabotage other teams, or interfere with event operations
  • Exploit or attack event infrastructure (e.g., DDoS, vulnerability scanning, token scraping).
  • Use multiple accounts to gain unfair advantage or otherwise game the process.
  • Refuse to sign finalist paperwork (IP assignment / contributor agreement) or fail KYC/tax checks if applicable.
  • Ignore organizer directions during submissions, evaluations, or presentations.
  • Breach the Code of Conduct, NDAs/agreements, platform terms, or applicable law.

Submissions that breach these Rules or platform terms may be removed without notice.

Accessibility & Accommodations

If you need accommodations (e.g., an alternate submission channel, Discord-free communications, accessible formats), email ask@optimas.ai as early as possible. We&aspo;ll make reasonable efforts to support you and will keep accommodation details confidential within the organizing team.

Communications & Changes

  • 1. Official updates are posted on this site (Updates) and in Discord #announcements.
  • 2. We may clarify or adjust timelines/processes for operational or legal reasons; material changes will be posted promptly.
  • 3. All official times use AoE (UTC-12). Local equivalents are shown on the Timeline page for convenience.
  • 4. The on-site Hackathon Assistant can answer many questions; for complex issues, use Discord #hackathon-tech-support or email ask@optimas.ai

Legal, Export, And Governing Law

  • 1. Compliance. You are responsible for complying with local laws, export controls, and sanctions regimes. Do not participate if prohibited.
  • 2. Third-party rights. You warrant your submission does not infringe others' rights and that all third-party components are used under licenses permitting OPTIMAS's intended use.
  • 3. Indemnity. You agree to hold the organizer harmless for your violations of these Rules or of applicable law.
  • 4. No warranties; limited liability. The hackathon is provided &aspo;as-is.' To the extent permitted by law, organizers are not liable for indirect or consequential damages.
  • 5. Governing law & venue. Jurisdiction/venue will be specified by the organizer; disputes will be resolved there unless prohibited by local law.
  • 6. Removal. We may remove content that appears unlawful, unsafe, harassing, or in breach of these Rules or platform policies.

Quick Facts

Team Size::

Solo/1-5 Member(s)

Cost:

Free

Prizes:

$45K in Total + Job Opportunity

Finalists: Top 5 per track announced October 25, 2025

Build window(finalists): October 27 - November 24, 2025 - 23:59

Winners announced: December 2, 2025

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