DotHack

DotHack is AINative's hackathon operations platform. It provides a complete backend API for creating, managing, and running hackathons with AI-powered features like semantic search, smart judging recommendations, and real-time leaderboards.

Base URL

https://dothack.ainative.studio

API Documentation (Swagger): https://dothack.ainative.studio/v1/docs

Authentication

DotHack uses AINative Authentication. If you have an AINative account, you can use it immediately - no separate registration required.

Login with AINative credentials

curl -X POST https://dothack.ainative.studio/api/v1/auth/login \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "email": "you@example.com",
    "password": "your-ainative-password"
  }'

Response:

{
  "tokens": {
    "access_token": "eyJhbG...",
    "refresh_token": "eyJhbG...",
    "token_type": "bearer"
  },
  "user": {
    "id": "user-uuid",
    "email": "you@example.com",
    "name": "Your Name"
  }
}

Using your token

Include the access token in all subsequent requests:

curl https://dothack.ainative.studio/api/v1/hackathons \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN"

API Key authentication

For server-to-server integrations, use your AINative API key:

curl https://dothack.ainative.studio/api/v1/hackathons \
  -H "X-API-Key: YOUR_AINATIVE_API_KEY"

Core Concepts

Concept	Description
Hackathon	The main event entity with schedule, tracks, and prizes
Track	Categories within a hackathon (e.g., "AI/ML", "Web3")
Participant	A user with a role: organizer, builder, judge, or mentor
Team	Group of builders working on a submission
Submission	A team's project entry with files and metadata
Rubric	Scoring criteria used by judges
Prize	Awards for winning submissions

API Modules

Module	Endpoints	Description
Authentication	3	Login, refresh tokens, get current user
Hackathons	4	Create, read, update, list hackathons
Tracks	5	Manage hackathon categories
Prizes	5	Configure awards and prizes
Participants	4	Join hackathons, manage roles
Teams	6	Create teams, manage members
Submissions	6	Submit projects, upload files
Judging	5	Score submissions, view leaderboard
Search	2	Semantic search across hackathons
Dashboard	4	Role-based analytics dashboards
Analytics	2	Statistics and data export

Quick Start

1. Login

# Get your access token
TOKEN=$(curl -s -X POST https://dothack.ainative.studio/api/v1/auth/login \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"email":"you@example.com","password":"your-password"}' \
  | jq -r '.tokens.access_token')

2. Create a hackathon

curl -X POST https://dothack.ainative.studio/api/v1/hackathons \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "name": "AI Innovation Challenge 2026",
    "description": "Build the future with AI",
    "start_date": "2026-07-01T00:00:00Z",
    "end_date": "2026-07-03T00:00:00Z",
    "status": "DRAFT"
  }'

3. Add tracks and prizes

# Add a track
curl -X POST https://dothack.ainative.studio/api/v1/hackathons/{hackathon_id}/tracks \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"name": "AI/ML", "description": "Machine learning and AI projects"}'

# Add a prize
curl -X POST https://dothack.ainative.studio/api/v1/hackathons/{hackathon_id}/prizes \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"name": "Grand Prize", "amount": 5000, "currency": "USD"}'

4. Participants join and build

# Join as a builder
curl -X POST https://dothack.ainative.studio/api/v1/hackathons/{hackathon_id}/join \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"role": "builder"}'

# Create a team
curl -X POST https://dothack.ainative.studio/api/v1/hackathons/{hackathon_id}/teams \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"name": "Team Awesome", "description": "We build cool things"}'

Tech Stack

• API: Python FastAPI
• Database: ZeroDB (tables, vectors, files, events)
• Auth: AINative Studio
• Search: Semantic search via ZeroDB Embeddings API
• Real-time: Go WebSocket service for live leaderboards
• Hosting: Railway