Hacking4Humanity 2026: Challenging AI Injustice, Building Ethical Futures

Hacking4Humanity 2026

February 20, 2026
1:00 - 5:00 p.m.
Power Center Ballroom and Online

About H4H 2026

Hacking4Humanity (H4H) is a tech and policy hackathon that offers students a new way to engage with real-world social problems that can be improved with novel technical and policy solutions. This year's theme is Challenging AI Injustice, Building Ethical Futures.

Any undergraduate and graduate students currently enrolled at a college or university in the Pittsburgh region can participate! Students compete in teams of 1-4 people in either the Tech track or the Policy track. Multiple Cash prizes will be awarded, with a Grand Prize of $1000 for the top finishers in each track!

H4H 2026 will be held February 6 - February 20, 2026. The hackathon will begin with a Zoom Kickoff on February 6, and final Tech and Policy presentations will be held in person at Duquesne University on February 20. The final competition will also be livestreamed, so you can attend the hackathon from anywhere! Livestream links will be posted prior to the event.

H4H 2026 Judges

• Stephen Gagliardi, Head of User Experience Design, CODE PA
• Cole Gessner, Program Manager and Policy Coordinator, Block Center for Technology and Society, Carnegie Mellon University
• Alida Laney, Data Engineer, City of Pittsburgh
• Katherine Norton, Associate Dean for Faculty Scholarship, Director of Clinical & International Programs, Associate Professor of Law, Director, Family Law Clinic, Duquesne University

H4H 2026 Advisors 

• Rahul Awasthy, Lead Enterprise Architect, Highmark Health
• Rene Canady,  CEO, ES BioDesign Consulting
• Winford Craig, Director of IT & STEM Programs, Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh
• Bishal Dasgupta, Associate, Expert Consulting, McKinsey & Company
• Nirmayee Dighe, Associate Director, Business Intelligence, Group 1001
• Vipin Gayanchandani, Senior Data Engineer, CVS Health
• Gregory Jones, Adjunct Professor, Theology, Duquesne University
• Sera Linardi,  Associate Professor, Public & International Affairs, University of Pittsburgh
• Sean Manion, Adjunct Professor, Psychology, Duquesne University
• Muzeeb Mohammed, Senior Manager, Software Engineering, JP Morgan Chase
• Alicia Morgan, Assistant Professor of Anatomy, Duquesne University
• Urvashi Nain, Director of Product Management, Visa
• Nurida Nurmambetova, Test Team Lead, AI-ML Global, Applause
• Nathan Ong, Assistant Professor, Computer Science, Duquesne University
• Julia Santucci, Associate Professor, Public & International Affairs, University of Pittsburgh

Organizers

Hacking4Humanity is a collaborative effort sponsored by these organizations:

• Grefenstette Center for Ethics in Science, Technology, and Law
• Pitt Cyber: The Institute for Cyber Law, Policy, and Security
• Center for Applied Research on Targeted Violence
• The Sara Fine Institute
• Community College of Allegheny County

Sponsors

Thank you to our generous sponsors for supporting this year's event!

• McAnulty College and Graduate School of Liberal Arts
  
• School of Science and Engineering
  
• Block Center for Technology and Society
  
• Partnership to Advance Responsible Technology (PART)
• Community College of Allegheny County Educational Foundation

To learn more about Hacking4Humanity, browse the highlight reel from H4H 2025 below, and find information on all past years' hackathons on our News and Events page.

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