Needle in the Hashtag - eSafety Hackathon
A two-day eSafety hackathon where builders, designers, students and community experts team up to tackle online harms using a safe, fully-simulated social platform.
Get your ticketsLog into the eSafety app- Speakers
- 11
- Participants
- 140
- Location
- Melbourne,
Stone & Chalk
In partnership with the University of Melbourne & the Office of the eSafety Commissioner
eSafety Hackathon 2025
Bringing research, policy, and engineering together around the mission of safer tech and a safer society.
"If you ask an AI developer to build something, they build something for developers. People solve the problems they know and understand. Magic happens when you bring AI people together with industry professionals."
Why Now? Supporting the UNiTE Campaign
This year's eSafety Hackathon is intentionally timed to coincide with the global 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence (Nov 25 – Dec 10, 2025).
The UN Women UNiTE campaign theme is "End digital violence against all women and girls."
Our Team Formation Night (Nov 26) and Hackathon Weekend (Nov 29-30) run within the campaign window, with Pitch Night (Dec 11) sustaining momentum immediately after Human Rights Day.
By aligning with this global movement, we invite participants, mentors, and sponsors to channel their effort into concrete, safety-by-design prototypes that address digital violence and online safety.
Gold Sponsors
Silver Sponsors
Community Partners
Event Overview
Three-part program designed for impact
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Team Formation Night
Trivia-style icebreakers and matchmaking to help you find your squad.
Register Now.webp)
Hackathon Weekend
Build, test, and iterate with mentors and domain experts available throughout.
Register NowPitch Day
Finalists pitch to a judging panel of industry, policy, and research leaders.
Why an eSafety Hackathon?
Online safety is one of the most pressing challenges of our digital age. As social platforms grow, so do the risks of online harms including cyberbullying, misinformation, and privacy violations.
This hackathon presents a unique opportunity to tackle these challenges in a safe, controlled environment. Participants will work with a fully-simulated social platform to develop innovative solutions that can help protect users and create safer online spaces.
Join us for two days of collaboration, innovation, and impact as we work together to build a safer digital future for everyone.
Speakers
We’re thrilled to welcome some of Australia’s leading thinkers and builders in AI, safety, and digital communities as speakers and mentors for this event.
What's happening when and where?
The hackathon consists of two main events, each happening in both Melbourne and Sydney.
eSafety Day 1
The first day of the hackathon focused on eSafety challenges.
eSafety Day 1
The first day of the hackathon focused on eSafety challenges.
eSafety Day 2
The second day continues with more hacking and eSafety talks.
Submission Deadline
Final deadline for all hackathon project submissions.
Pitch Day
The grand finale where finalists pitch their solutions.
Awesome Mentors and Advisors
The MLAI e-Safety Hackathon would simply be impossible without our awesome mentors and volunteers.
David Gilmore
Mentor
Utkarsh Nagar
Mentor
Alan Agon
Mentor
Krishna kanth Mundada
Mentor
Tung Van Truong
Mentor
Sanath Kolachippu
Mentor
Sajjad Kamal
Mentor
Aaron Chan
Mentor
Abhay
Mentor
Sarah davis-Gilmore
Mentor
Dave Morrissey
Mentor
Miles Johnson
Mentor
Joseph Roccisano
Mentor
Manu Ventura
Mentor
Khatija
Mentor
Jasmine Raj
Mentor
Annie Davila Campanello
Mentor
Pegah Khalegi
Mentor
Trevor Brunton
Mentor
Sumedh
Mentor
JK Chang
Mentor
Anshuk Kumar
Mentor
MLAI AUS team
MLAI Aus is run entirely by volunteers. Interested in jumping aboard the pirate ship?
Learn more about our organisation →
Xavier Andueza
President
Michael Reitzenstein
Vice President
Pegah Khaleghi
Treasurer
Lukas Wesemann
Secretary
Dr Sam Donegan
Head of Marketing
Callum Holt
Head of Partnerships
Tom McKenzie
Head of Technology
Jasmine Raj
Co-Head of Community
Ethan Lee
Co-Head of Community
FAQ
Have questions? We've got answers. If you can't find what you're looking for, feel free to reach out to us.
The eSafety Hackathon is a two-day event where builders, designers, students, and community experts team up to tackle online harms using a safe, fully-simulated social platform. It's an opportunity to develop innovative solutions that can help protect users and create safer online spaces.