Just as would be the case in a hackathon, participants are invited to develop web applications or mobile solutions working with at least one (or more) dataset produced by the EU institutions or agencies, combined or not with others from local, national or supranational government bodies.

The difference is that developers will not be gathered in the same place on a certain day but will send their proposals to the jury for preselection before a given date. The preselected teams will then be invited to develop their project and to present it in Brussels during the main event, on 16 November.

Teams are encouraged to build applications that address a policy or societal challenge of their choice. These could be apps that use open data for such goals as improved mobility, education or public health, healthier environment etc. 

The only condition is to use at least one dataset available via the EU Open Data Portal.

- promote the reuse of open data as an enabler in the growing data economy;
- produce innovative applications, including visualisations;
- stimulate the use of open data issued from the public administrations and to engage with new audiences.

The EU Datathon is open to anyone, including data scientists, computer programmers, graphic and interface designers, data journalists, data community activists, IT project managers, etc. who are interested in trying to creatively tackle societal challenges through data exploration and/or create prototype products based on open data.

The EU Datathon is open to teams and companies based in the EU or EFTA (European Free Trade Association) countries.

One member of the team will be the contact person. For the preselected teams, two team members will be invited to the final event in Brussels on 16 November 2017.

The EU Datathon competition is not open to staff working in the EU institutions.

The goal of the contest is to tackle one (or more) of the challenges given by using at least one dataset (e.g. on mobility, public health, education or the environment) from the EU Open Data Portal, combined or not with others coming from local, national or supranational government bodies.

The result should be an original mobile or web application that will help improve the everyday lives of all citizens. In order to increase chances of winning, it could also contain the following.

1. One of these specific datasets from the EU Open Data Portal, such as:
   1. TED dataset;
   2. CORDIS dataset;
   3. Transparency Register dataset;
   4. European Skills, Competences, Qualifications and Occupations dataset.
2. Export feature for data in CSV format and possibly in PDF, JPEG or PNG files.
3. Search feature making it possible to perform queries.
4. Alert feature for updates, possibly allowing the user to configure the alerts they want to receive.
5. Submission feature for questions, comments or annotations on specific results.
6. Save results feature for later consultation.
7. Share feature to e-mail, social media and other channels.

For more information about these features or any other dataset, feel free to register for the explanatory webinar.

Phase 1 Introduction webinars

The first webinar explaining EU datasets and the EU Open Data Portal will take place on 28 September 2017. This webinar (registration being optional) will allow participants to learn more about the datasets they are interested in. The second webinar with different data providers and different datasets will take place on 3 October 2017. Due to the success of previous webinars, we are offering a third one, with new datasets! We're also extending the deadline for registrations to 15 October! Watch this space!

Phase 2 Team registration with proposal for an app

Participants will submit a proposal (short description of the idea) for the mobile or web application they wish to develop by 15 October 2017.

Phase 3 Notification of shortlisted teams

The internal panel will evaluate the proposals based on the criterion ‘Relevance’ and announce the shortlisted teams on 23 October 2017. The evaluation of the shortlisted teams will follow the ‘Evaluation criteria’.

Phase 4 Submission of final app

The teams will submit their final app for the evaluation by 12 November 2017.

Phase 5 Final event in Brussels

The preselected teams (represented by one or two members) will be invited to the final phase in Brussels on 16 November 2017. Transport and accommodation will be provided by the organisers in due time. (Please do not book anything in advance as refunds will not be possible.) The final event will include:

- pitch presentations and demonstrations of the projects by the teams;
- speeches from international open data experts on relevant topics;
- announcement of the winners and award of the prizes.

The three Junker priorities for this competition:

- Jobs, growth and investment;
- Digital single market;
- Democratic change.

The EU Datathon jury members will come from within and outside the European Union institutions and from the Estonian Presidency, from statistical domain to policymaking domains. The full list of jury members is published in the speakers tab.

The winners of the EU Datathon will be invited to present their project at the European Big Data Value Forum, a key European event for industry professionals, business developers, researchers, and policy makers to discuss the challenges and opportunities of the European data economy and data-driven innovation in Europe.  The event will be held in Versailles (Palais des Congrès), France, from 21 to 23 November 2017. Registration, travel and accommodation costs for two persons from the winning team will be covered.

The Publications Office has the right to terminate the contest before its closing date without any obligation to indemnify contestants.

Phase 1: the description of projects submitted for the preselection will remain property of the participants and will not be made public (or disclosed).

Phase 2: the shortlisted full projects will remain property of the developers but will be accessible to the jury and to the participants of the event.

Phase 3: the three winning app(s) will remain property of the owner(s). However, the EU institutions will be allowed to mention and promote on their channels (website, social media, press releases, etc.) the winning app(s) without any further economic compensation. In particular, the winning app(s) will be featured in the 'Applications' section of the EU Data Portal. Other shortlisted apps may also be promoted under these conditions. Where appropriate, the name and copyright of the creators will be mentioned.

In case the participants use pre-existing material for their apps, they guarantee that they have obtained all the necessary authorisations in order for such material to be used according to the rules described above.