Hackers face challenge to harness the power of government data

Hundreds of honourable hackers will descend on The University of Queensland this weekend for the world’s largest open data hackathon.

GovHack Australia Chair and Queensland State Director Jason Weigel said participants would have 46 hours to create innovative and useful projects that harnessed the value of open data published by government.

“They could create innovative apps and products, or mash up data through visualisations, games, art work or data stories,” he said.

“Teams will work through the weekend to find new ideas or ways to reuse the data to win prizes in international, national and local categories.”

He said a UQ team in the 2017 GovHack had used Brisbane City Cycle data to create a mobile app that took users on a journey from the closest bike rack to some of the best landmarks in Brisbane.

Mr Weigel, who is a UQ PhD student, said projects such as GovHack inspired governments to make positive changes to data delivery.

“These initiatives make it easier for the public to understand how governments use revenue, and encourage governments to focus more attention on delivering services relevant to those using them,” he said.

Minister for Digital Technology Mick de Brenni will open the two-day challenge on Friday night.

UQ Vice-Chancellor and President Professor Peter Høj said GovHack encouraged ethical hackers to harness open data to create positive change in the community.

“This is an excellent opportunity for inventive, dedicated people to form innovative collaborations that could have high returns for society.

“It fits well with UQ’s work to nurture a robust entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystem.”

GovHack will be held at UQ’s Advanced Engineering Building from Friday 7 September to Sunday 9 September.

Registrations are open at http://hackerspace.govhack.org/.

WHAT: GovHack 2018

WHERE: Rooms 301 and 200, Advanced Engineering Building, The University of Queensland

WHEN: 7-9 September

Media: GovHack Australia Limited Chair Jason Weigel, qld@govhack.org; The University of Queenland, Dr Marie Boden, 0435 378 865.