For the moon's dark side
Build a world as a Gift
For the kid I used to be
Online Sep 15 – Oct 5·Offline Oct 5–20
Submission ClosesAoE (UTC−12)
- 08Days
- 05Hours
- 43Min
- 38Sec
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01 / About
The 1st World-Building Hackathon
Tripothon is a global world-building competition: build online, then demo it live in seven cities. You make a world as a gift — for a person, a place, or a future that does not exist yet.
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AI learned to write
Then it learned to see
Then it learned to move
Now, it's your turn, to build worlds
Text→Image→Video→World
Coding AgentsLLMsImage ModelsVideo ModelsWorld ModelsGame EnginesCreative Tools
Every step on this path is a protagonist of Tripothon.
02 / Scale
3000+
Participants
30+
Countries
7
Cities
40
Days (Online + Offline)
$80,000
Prize Pool
03 / Tracks
5 Direction Tracks + Tool Tracks
Choose one Direction Track & optionally 0–3 Tool Tracks. Teams of 1–3 — or go solo.
Direction 01
Game
Playable worlds, mechanics, narrative systems, AI-assisted game development.
Direction 02
Film / VFX
Short film, animation, VFX, AI 3D production workflows.
Direction 03
VR / XR / AR
VR, AR, WebXR, spatial and immersive experiences.
Direction 04
App
Web, AI-native products, creative tools, interactive apps.
Direction 05
Physical Design
3D printing, product design, installations, digital-to-physical making.
Tool Track
More coming soon
Tool tracks from Tripo’s partners — Tripo, PICO, Heygears, World Labs, Jupiter.
04 / How it works
A global open call.
Two prize pools: submit online to compete for the global pool — attend a Demo Day and compete for both.
01
Global Open Call
August 2026Launch the global call for entries. Announce the competition rules, regional divisions, tracks, and participation rules.
02
Submission Period
Sep 15 – Oct 5, 2026Participants from 5 tracks submit their works online.
03
Jury Review
Oct 5 – 25Online and in-person judging will run simultaneously. Participants who cannot attend an in-person event will still be eligible for the online prize pool. Those attending in person will also have the opportunity to attend offline events for the local award, which will be presented on site.
04
Winner Announcement
Oct 25Announce the winning teams & projects.
05
Offline Demo Day
Oct 5–20, 2026Regional Demo Days across key locations: a physical demo show and on-site evaluation. Attendees compete for both the global online prize pool and their region’s offline prizes.
05 / Cities
Seven cities. One season.
Where will your world premiere? Hover a pin to highlight its city card.
Asia · Tokyo
Oct 9
City link TBA
South America · São Paulo
Oct 11
City event↗
Asia · Seoul
Oct 16
City event↗
Europe · Paris
Oct 17
City link TBA
Asia · Shanghai
Oct 17
City event↗
Europe · Barcelona
Oct 17
City event↗
06 / Submission & judging
What you ship. How it is scored.
Tool Track entries must actually use the named tool — otherwise they are disqualified from that track.
Complete playable demo
A complete demo the judges can play and try for themselves.
Required
Screen recording
A walkthrough of the world, not a trailer cut.
Required
Visual asset board
Key stills, turnarounds, or environment frames.
Required
Public build log
Progress notes or posts. Optional, but we amplify the loud ones.
Optional
07 / Judging
Judging Criteria
Direction Track
01
Creativity
30%
02
Completeness
25%
03
Theme fit
20%
04
Viral potential
15%
05
Commercial value
10%
- 01Creativity30%
- 02Completeness25%
- 03Theme fit20%
- 04Viral potential15%
- 05Commercial value10%
Tool Track
01
Inventive use of the tool
35%
02
Tool synergy
25%
03
Tool contribution
20%
04
Theme fit
10%
05
Breakout potential
10%
- 01Inventive use of the tool35%
- 02Tool synergy25%
- 03Tool contribution20%
- 04Theme fit10%
- 05Breakout potential10%
08 / Prizes
What you win.
Global Online Prize Pool
All eligible participants can compete for the global online prize pool, regardless of whether they attend an offline event. Participants attending an offline event will be eligible for both the global online prize pool and the additional offline regional prizes. Regional awards will be presented on site.
Global Top 1
$5,000
Global Top 2
$4,000
Global Top 3
$3,000
Best Use of Heygears
$800
Best Use of Tripo
$800
Best Use of World Labs
$800
Best Use of PICO
$800
Best Game Project
$800
Best XR/VR Project
$800
Best AI Filmmaking Project
$800
Best Application Project
$800
Best Physical Design Project
$800
US Offline Prize Pool
Special thanks to the local sponsors.
U.S. Regional Top 1
$5,000
U.S. Regional Top 2
$3,500
U.S. Regional Top 3
$2,200
Best Use of Heygears
$800
Best Use of Tripo
$800
Best Use of World Labs
$800
Best Use of PICO
$800
Best Use of Jupiter
$800
Beyond the prizes listed above, we’ve also got 2 Xbox consoles and Logitech gift bundles waiting for you on Demo Day — come and unlock them!
Other Regions Offline Prize Pool
The Best Use of Partner Tools awards recognize outstanding projects that make creative use of Tripo, PICO, Heygears, World Labs, or other tools from Tripo’s partners.
Regional Top 1
$2,500
Regional Top 2
$1,500
Regional Top 3
$1,200
Best Use of Heygears
$400
Best Use of Tripo
$400
Best Use of World Labs
$400
Best Use of PICO
$400
Best Use of Jupiter
$400
Beyond the prizes listed above, we’ve also got 2 Xbox consoles and Logitech gift bundles waiting for you on Demo Day — come and unlock them!
Social Media Prize Pool
Most Liked Post on Xiaohongshu
Awarded to the eligible individual post on Xiaohongshu (RedNote) with the highest number of likes as of October 20, provided the post has received at least 1,000 likes.
Mac mini
How to join
Share the creative process behind your Tripothon project on Xiaohongshu, tag @TripoAI and use the hashtag #Tripothon.
09 / Judges
Invited Judges
Pieter Levels
Independent maker · levelsio
GameApplication
Dilum Sanjaya
3D Artist
Application
Hajime Shimoyama
Professor, Jissen Women's University
XR / VR / ARAR Art
Sujita
Creator · @thebuggeddev
Application
Danny Limanseta
Game creator
Game
Minh Do
Co-founder, Machine Cinema
FilmVFX
World Labs
Spatial intelligence
Spatial Intelligence3D World ModelsAI Filming + VFX
Christian Sandor
Professor, Université Paris-Saclay
AR & XR
Uğur Yekta Başak
CEO, Artlabs
3D AI
Toms Ce
Co-founder & CEO, Applied Reality
World ModelsSpatial AIInteractive 3D
Ian Claffey
Associate Principal Artist, Rockstar Games
VFXAnimationVR
Huang Huaqing
Associate Professor & PhD Supervisor, Shanghai Jiao Tong University
ArchitectureXR/VR3D / Digital Heritage
Jean-Rémy Chardonnet
Professor & Institute Director, Arts et Métiers
XRSpatial
Eran Stern
Creative Technologist & Motion Design Educator
VFXCG
Xiaotong Wen
AI Filmmaker, Utopai Studios
VFXCG
Takafumi Koike
Professor, Hosei University · CEO, RealImage
XR
Haoran Xie
Associate Professor, JAIST · Researcher, Waseda University
3D AI
John Mahoney
Adjunct Associate Professor, USC Animation and Digital Arts
FilmVFX
Christian Méndez
Program Director, Animation & Digital Effects, UDEM
Game
Victor de Freitas Botelho
Computer Graphics Instructor, SENAC Osasco
FilmVFX
Marc Comino Trinidad
Assistant Professor, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos
GameVFX
Jorge Félix López Moreno
Professor, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos
GameVFX
Kevin Arzate Lugardo
VR Professor, Universidad Panamericana · Game Engineer
VR / XR / AR
Frank Bovenkerk
XR Researcher, HAN University of Applied Sciences
VR / XR / AR
Vincent Schwenk
3D Artist & Creative Director
Physical Design
Nicolas Barradeau
Creative Coder & Creative Developer
Application
Emmanuel Cruellas
Co-founder & Creative Director, Bonhomme
Application
Pedro Fernandes
Founder & Chief Creative Director, Arqui9 Visualisation
FilmVFX
Eishi Saito
CTO, STYLY WebAR
José Ledón Roig
Interaction Designer & Game Design Educator
Game
Enrique Yeguas Bolívar
Associate Professor, University of Córdoba
VR / XR / AR
Neri Neto
Founder, Neriverso · Unreal Engine Educator
Game
Raniê Solarevisky de Jesus
Professor of Journalism · Coordinator, Nodus (UFG)
Application
Alon Grinshpoon
CEO, echo3D
Zhu Xiaohu
AGI Safety Researcher · Google AI GDE
Costas Kazantzis
Lead Creative Technologist, Fashion Innovation Agency (LCF)
Fashion3DAIXR
Eric Aubry
3D Engineering & Development Manager, INITIAL – PRODWAYS Group
3D Printing
François-Xavier Aubague
Founder & Creative Director, 5motion
VFX
Lucas Mainovo
Creative Director & 3D Director, Mainovo Works
VFXCG
Lirong Zhang
Developer Relations Lead, FalkorDB · Founder, The Multimodal Society
ApplicationAI
Roan Weigert
DevRel Lead, GMI Cloud
Isaac Bratzel
Founder & CEO, AvatarOS
Manuel Jiménez García
CEO, Nagami Design
Physical Design
Xavi Tribó
Creative Technologist, Melt
ApplicationAI
Peter Laso
3D Artist, Technical Supervisor & Instructor
3DAnimation
Carolina Jiménez García
Visual Effects Artist, Educator & Supervisor for Film and Television
VFX
Clyde Shutian Li
Director of Strategic M&A, BlueFocus Group North America
ApplicationAI
Jesse Yu
Senior Emerging Technologies Associate · Adjunct Instructor of Virtual Production, NYU Tisch IMA Low Res
VR / XR / AR
Siqi He
AI-Native Product Builder, Pika
ApplicationAI
Haixin
AI Artist & Director
Simon Awen
AI Artist & 3D Creator
Damiano De Cataldo
Creative Lead & Art Director
Artzai Elorza Arana
3D Art Director & Creative Technologist
Jusub Kim
Professor of Art & Technology, Sogang University
Interactive 3D
Gyuhyun Kim
Associate Professor, Chung-Ang University · Director, CAD Lab · Co-founder, STUDIO OTQ
AnimationAICG
Cleomar Rocha
Full Professor & Media Lab Coordinator, Federal University of Goiás
Mariana Falcão
Creative Director & Co-founder, DOBRO
FilmVFX
Rejane Cantoni
Artist & Researcher · Art, Science and Technology
Application
Zack Zhuang
Co-founder, Partytime · ex-founder, Lobby
jelaxrosa
VFX Artist, Filmmaker & Content Creator
VFX
Gowthami Somepalli
Member of Technical Staff, World Labs
VR / XR / AR
Yi Hua
Member of Technical Staff, World Labs
VR / XR / AR
Brittani Natali
Member of Technical Staff, World Labs
VR / XR / AR
NOWB
Designer & Design Content Creator
ApplicationVisual Design
Ian Curtis
Member of Technical Staff, World Labs
VR / XR / AR
Jordan Mirrer
Gaming & Entertainment Strategist
Game
Adolfo Muñoz
Associate Professor of Computer Science, Universidad de Zaragoza
Jacqueline Cooper
Co-Founder & Head of Production, CG Pro
Edward Dawson-Taylor
Co-Founder & CTO, CG Pro
Ziyang Wu
Artist · Director of Open Media, School of Intermedia Art, China Academy of Art
FilmAR & XRInteractive 3D
Sanlang
Founder & Director, Wanwu Poyuan Video Game Museum · Initiator, China Indie Game Alliance · Producer, "Going Solo"
Game
Tony Shong
Vice President, Indie Light · Game Culture Advocate & Educator
Game
Yawen
Director, Tianjin Tianchuangshe · Indie Game Ecosystem Builder
Game
Zheng Yi
Head of Game Science & Technology, Communication University of China · Executive Director, Future Media Lab
Game
Jung Hyun Moon
Associate Arts Professor of Interactive Media Arts · IMA Low Res Coordinator, NYU Shanghai
Qianshui
Editor-in-Chief, TapTap
Yu Haonan
Investor, ZhenFund · Head of the Gen-Z Program
Andrés Lieban
Creative Director & Founder, 2DLab · Mentor, StudyBoards
VFXCG
Jiahui Fu
Founding Team, Rena Labs · Creator of Addys AI
Qinru Xiong
Head of Partnerships, PixVerse
Maycon Guerra
Professor of Computer Graphics, Games & VFX, SENAC Santo André
Adilson da Silva Freitas
Professor of 3D, Animation & Design, SENAC Campinas
Regis Akira Sato
Professor of Computer Graphics, Digital Games & IT, SENAC São Bernardo do Campo
Felipe Augusto Pires
Professor of Design, Computer Graphics & AI, SENAC Piracicaba
Nikolaj Sloth Kramer
Cand.Arch · Creative Professional · Associate Professor
Lukasz Mirocha
Founder, Opus Lab 3D · Spatial Media & Real-time 3D Expert
Sentong Chang
3D Environment Artist · Technical Artist
Game
Valentino Tagliaboschi
Applications Architect, Aridditive · External Faculty, IAAC
Ángel De Franganillo
Marketing Artist, Bandai Namco · Creative & Art Director
Patrick Glauner
Professor, Executive Advisor, Author & Programmer in High-tech R&D
Mohamed Lotfy
3D Environment Artist
Oscar Marquez Chicharro
Crowd Supervisor, Film & TV VFX
Julien Levy
Creative Technologist & Immersive Experience Designer
Whiplus Wang
Head of IVS Global
Ricardo Cavaretti
CEO, XR Studio
VR / XR / AR
Paulo Muppet
Producer, Birdo
Tatsuma Nakano
Freelance Creative Technologist
VR / XR / ARApplication
Jinding Kong
Senior 3D Artist · Lead Artist · Art Manager, Limit Break
Game3D Art
Georgios Tsampounaris
XR Developer, AV Artist & Founder
Pieter Levels
Independent maker · levelsio
GameApplicationDilum Sanjaya
3D Artist
ApplicationHajime Shimoyama
Professor, Jissen Women's University
XR / VR / ARAR ArtSujita
Creator · @thebuggeddev
ApplicationDanny Limanseta
Game creator
GameMinh Do
Co-founder, Machine Cinema
FilmVFXWorld Labs
Spatial intelligence
Spatial Intelligence3D World ModelsAI Filming + VFXChristian Sandor
Professor, Université Paris-Saclay
AR & XRUğur Yekta Başak
CEO, Artlabs
3D AIToms Ce
Co-founder & CEO, Applied Reality
World ModelsSpatial AIInteractive 3DIan Claffey
Associate Principal Artist, Rockstar Games
VFXAnimationVRHuang Huaqing
Associate Professor & PhD Supervisor, Shanghai Jiao Tong University
ArchitectureXR/VR3D / Digital HeritageJean-Rémy Chardonnet
Professor & Institute Director, Arts et Métiers
XRSpatialEran Stern
Creative Technologist & Motion Design Educator
VFXCGXiaotong Wen
AI Filmmaker, Utopai Studios
VFXCGTakafumi Koike
Professor, Hosei University · CEO, RealImage
XRHaoran Xie
Associate Professor, JAIST · Researcher, Waseda University
3D AIJohn Mahoney
Adjunct Associate Professor, USC Animation and Digital Arts
FilmVFXChristian Méndez
Program Director, Animation & Digital Effects, UDEM
GameVictor de Freitas Botelho
Computer Graphics Instructor, SENAC Osasco
FilmVFXMarc Comino Trinidad
Assistant Professor, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos
GameVFXJorge Félix López Moreno
Professor, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos
GameVFXKevin Arzate Lugardo
VR Professor, Universidad Panamericana · Game Engineer
VR / XR / ARFrank Bovenkerk
XR Researcher, HAN University of Applied Sciences
VR / XR / ARVincent Schwenk
3D Artist & Creative Director
Physical DesignNicolas Barradeau
Creative Coder & Creative Developer
ApplicationEmmanuel Cruellas
Co-founder & Creative Director, Bonhomme
ApplicationPedro Fernandes
Founder & Chief Creative Director, Arqui9 Visualisation
FilmVFXEishi Saito
CTO, STYLY WebAR
José Ledón Roig
Interaction Designer & Game Design Educator
GameEnrique Yeguas Bolívar
Associate Professor, University of Córdoba
VR / XR / ARNeri Neto
Founder, Neriverso · Unreal Engine Educator
GameRaniê Solarevisky de Jesus
Professor of Journalism · Coordinator, Nodus (UFG)
ApplicationAlon Grinshpoon
CEO, echo3D
Zhu Xiaohu
AGI Safety Researcher · Google AI GDE
Costas Kazantzis
Lead Creative Technologist, Fashion Innovation Agency (LCF)
Fashion3DAIXREric Aubry
3D Engineering & Development Manager, INITIAL – PRODWAYS Group
3D PrintingFrançois-Xavier Aubague
Founder & Creative Director, 5motion
VFXLucas Mainovo
Creative Director & 3D Director, Mainovo Works
VFXCGLirong Zhang
Developer Relations Lead, FalkorDB · Founder, The Multimodal Society
ApplicationAIRoan Weigert
DevRel Lead, GMI Cloud
Isaac Bratzel
Founder & CEO, AvatarOS
Manuel Jiménez García
CEO, Nagami Design
Physical DesignXavi Tribó
Creative Technologist, Melt
ApplicationAIPeter Laso
3D Artist, Technical Supervisor & Instructor
3DAnimationCarolina Jiménez García
Visual Effects Artist, Educator & Supervisor for Film and Television
VFXClyde Shutian Li
Director of Strategic M&A, BlueFocus Group North America
ApplicationAIJesse Yu
Senior Emerging Technologies Associate · Adjunct Instructor of Virtual Production, NYU Tisch IMA Low Res
VR / XR / ARSiqi He
AI-Native Product Builder, Pika
ApplicationAIHaixin
AI Artist & Director
Simon Awen
AI Artist & 3D Creator
Damiano De Cataldo
Creative Lead & Art Director
Artzai Elorza Arana
3D Art Director & Creative Technologist
Jusub Kim
Professor of Art & Technology, Sogang University
Interactive 3DGyuhyun Kim
Associate Professor, Chung-Ang University · Director, CAD Lab · Co-founder, STUDIO OTQ
AnimationAICGCleomar Rocha
Full Professor & Media Lab Coordinator, Federal University of Goiás
Mariana Falcão
Creative Director & Co-founder, DOBRO
FilmVFXRejane Cantoni
Artist & Researcher · Art, Science and Technology
ApplicationZack Zhuang
Co-founder, Partytime · ex-founder, Lobby
jelaxrosa
VFX Artist, Filmmaker & Content Creator
VFXGowthami Somepalli
Member of Technical Staff, World Labs
VR / XR / ARYi Hua
Member of Technical Staff, World Labs
VR / XR / ARBrittani Natali
Member of Technical Staff, World Labs
VR / XR / ARNOWB
Designer & Design Content Creator
ApplicationVisual DesignIan Curtis
Member of Technical Staff, World Labs
VR / XR / ARJordan Mirrer
Gaming & Entertainment Strategist
GameAdolfo Muñoz
Associate Professor of Computer Science, Universidad de Zaragoza
Jacqueline Cooper
Co-Founder & Head of Production, CG Pro
Edward Dawson-Taylor
Co-Founder & CTO, CG Pro
Ziyang Wu
Artist · Director of Open Media, School of Intermedia Art, China Academy of Art
FilmAR & XRInteractive 3DSanlang
Founder & Director, Wanwu Poyuan Video Game Museum · Initiator, China Indie Game Alliance · Producer, "Going Solo"
GameTony Shong
Vice President, Indie Light · Game Culture Advocate & Educator
GameYawen
Director, Tianjin Tianchuangshe · Indie Game Ecosystem Builder
GameZheng Yi
Head of Game Science & Technology, Communication University of China · Executive Director, Future Media Lab
GameJung Hyun Moon
Associate Arts Professor of Interactive Media Arts · IMA Low Res Coordinator, NYU Shanghai
Qianshui
Editor-in-Chief, TapTap
Yu Haonan
Investor, ZhenFund · Head of the Gen-Z Program
Andrés Lieban
Creative Director & Founder, 2DLab · Mentor, StudyBoards
VFXCGJiahui Fu
Founding Team, Rena Labs · Creator of Addys AI
Qinru Xiong
Head of Partnerships, PixVerse
Maycon Guerra
Professor of Computer Graphics, Games & VFX, SENAC Santo André
Adilson da Silva Freitas
Professor of 3D, Animation & Design, SENAC Campinas
Regis Akira Sato
Professor of Computer Graphics, Digital Games & IT, SENAC São Bernardo do Campo
Felipe Augusto Pires
Professor of Design, Computer Graphics & AI, SENAC Piracicaba
Nikolaj Sloth Kramer
Cand.Arch · Creative Professional · Associate Professor
Lukasz Mirocha
Founder, Opus Lab 3D · Spatial Media & Real-time 3D Expert
Sentong Chang
3D Environment Artist · Technical Artist
GameValentino Tagliaboschi
Applications Architect, Aridditive · External Faculty, IAAC
Ángel De Franganillo
Marketing Artist, Bandai Namco · Creative & Art Director
Patrick Glauner
Professor, Executive Advisor, Author & Programmer in High-tech R&D
Mohamed Lotfy
3D Environment Artist
Oscar Marquez Chicharro
Crowd Supervisor, Film & TV VFX
Julien Levy
Creative Technologist & Immersive Experience Designer
Whiplus Wang
Head of IVS Global
Ricardo Cavaretti
CEO, XR Studio
VR / XR / ARPaulo Muppet
Producer, Birdo
Tatsuma Nakano
Freelance Creative Technologist
VR / XR / ARApplicationJinding Kong
Senior 3D Artist · Lead Artist · Art Manager, Limit Break
Game3D ArtGeorgios Tsampounaris
XR Developer, AV Artist & Founder
More to come
10 / FAQ
Four things people ask first.
Tripothon S1 is free to enter. Open to developers, artists, students and makers worldwide.
Teams of 1–3. Solo is welcome. One required Direction Track, plus optional 0–3 Tool Tracks.
Direction Tracks are open to any stack. Tool Tracks (from Tripo’s partners: Tripo, PICO, Heygears, World Labs, Jupiter — more coming soon) require real use of that tool.
Yes. Every entry competes for the global online prize pool; attend an offline Demo Day and you can also compete for your region’s offline prizes, presented on site.
Your world is the next gift.
Tripothon S1 · Build a world as a Gift · The 1st World-Building Hackathon