> Unofficial AI-assisted summary, provided "as is" with no warranty. The [Official Rules](https://cerebralvalley.ai/e/meta-ai-developer-hackathon/waiver) govern; read [DISCLAIMER.md](../DISCLAIMER.md). As of 2026-10-26.

# Official Rules, section by section

The Official Rules sit on the event's waiver page as "Hackathon Terms & Conditions ("Official Rules") and Event Waiver",
dated **Oct 25, 2026**. The event pages still say the rules "will be published before the Hackathon begins", so a newer
version may appear; check the waiver page itself. The rules call themselves a contract that includes indemnities and
limits on your rights and remedies. Read the original before you rely on anything below.

| Section | What it means for you, in our words |
|---|---|
| **Contract** | Taking part means you accept the rules and confirm you're eligible. They bind you like any contract. |
| **Organizers** | Cerebral Valley Enterprises, Inc., Meta Platforms, Inc. and/or its affiliates, and their partners and affiliates involved in the event. |
| **Eligibility** | 18+ and of age where you live, location and sanctions limits, excluded staff and families. See [06-eligibility.md](06-eligibility.md). |
| **Application and format** | Only accepted applicants take part; applications closed Oct 25 at 11:59 PM ET; the event is virtual only. |
| **Tracks and Representative** | One track per person and project. Teams name a Representative who submits, lists every member and vouches that each has accepted the rules. See [03-tracks.md](03-tracks.md). |
| **Judging** | Impact 30%, Use of Meta AI Tooling 25%, Technical Depth & Execution 20%, Demo 25%; these criteria apply to submissions, not to applications. See [08-judging.md](08-judging.md). |
| **Prizes and verification** | Prizes are paid in US dollars after eligibility checks; the organizers' decisions are final; a winner can be disqualified and replaced. See [09-prizes-and-payout.md](09-prizes-and-payout.md). |
| **Your submission** | You promise it is your own original work, solely owned by you or your team, and doesn't infringe anyone's rights. Third-party technical help is fine if the parts stay your own work and you own the rights. Open-source components are fine if you follow their licences and your submission "enhances or builds upon" them. |
| **Your intellectual property** | You keep ownership. You give the organizers a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free, non-exclusive licence to use, adapt, publish and show the submission for any purpose, including marketing. |
| **Other materials you share** | Ideas, pitches, feedback and other "Materials" are not treated as confidential. The organizers get a royalty-free, transferable, sub-licensable, worldwide, perpetual and irrevocable licence to use them. Don't share anything you need to keep secret. |
| **Recordings and publicity** | The event may be recorded or streamed. You let the organizers use your name, likeness, voice, chat messages, screen shares and submission in any media, indefinitely, without pay. Recordings belong to the organizers. Winners' names and likenesses may be used in publicity without further consent. |
| **Personal data and marketing** | Information you submitted (such as name and email) may be shared with organizers, sponsors and others for related marketing, and you may hear from them after the event. Meta handles data under its own privacy policy. |
| **Code of conduct** | Be professional, respectful and inclusive in every event space, including chat, calls, forums and shared repositories. Disruptive, abusive, discriminatory or harassing behaviour can get you removed or disqualified. |
| **Assumption of risk** | Outages, data loss, platform breaches and other participants' conduct are risks you accept. |
| **Release and indemnity** | You release the organizers and related parties from most claims connected to the event, including claims over recordings. The release extends to claims you don't know about yet; the rules quote California's rule on general releases and waive it. You also indemnify them against third-party claims caused by your conduct. Gross negligence and wilful misconduct are excluded, as California law requires. |
| **Governing law** | California law; courts in San Francisco. |
| **Third-party platforms** | The organizers aren't responsible for third-party tools and services used in the event. |
| **Changes** | The organizers can change the terms; significant changes are sent to registered participants. |
| **Other** | Severability; no waiver unless in writing. |

## Separate documents the rules point to

- **Credit Terms** (a PDF linked from the waiver page) for the $150 Model API credit. See [10-credits.md](10-credits.md).
- Meta's **Acceptable Use Policy**, **Terms of Service** and **Geographic Use Policy** for anything you run on the Model API.
  See [13-acceptable-use-and-data.md](13-acceptable-use-and-data.md).
- Meta's privacy policy, for personal data collected with your application.

## What the rules don't say

- Nothing requires a public repository or a particular open-source licence.
- Nothing sets a video length.
- Nothing addresses third-party AI coding tools, or code written before the event, beyond the originality and ownership
  promises above. Our reading, not legal advice: disclose prior work and the tools you used in your description.

Source: https://cerebralvalley.ai/e/meta-ai-developer-hackathon/waiver, checked 2026-10-26.