TecStorm '27
From concept to creation
16-18 APRIL | FIDELIDADE HEADQUARTERS
Join the biggest university hackathon in Portugal
Where technology, creativity and entrepreneurship come together
Tecstorm is the largest university-level technology competition in Portugal, combining technology and entrepreneurship to create a more promising future.
After months of preparation, students from all over Portugal come together to turn an idea into a real prototype, with just 24 hours to bring it to life in the Final.
We inspire, foster and give a voice to ideas with the potential of transforming our society.
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Universities Reached
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How it works
- 1Register
- 2Join a Team
- 3Develop Your Idea
- 4Mentorship
- 5Final Pitch
- 6Win
What we offer
- Meals
- Transportation and Accommodation
- Technical Material
- Mentor Network
We want to guarantee the presence of the best students.
Prizes
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In prizes across 6 categories
Timeline
Registrations
9 Nov — 13 Dec
Teams register and get ready to bring their ideas to life.
Roadshow
9 Nov — 4 Dec
We travel across Portuguese universities to spark the next generation of innovators.
Ideation
4 — 22 Jan
Participants structure their ideas with the support of specialized mentors.
Selection
10 Feb
Projects are reviewed and the most promising ones move forward.
Mentorship
22 Feb — 23 Mar
Finalists receive technical and strategic guidance to refine their projects.
Final
16 — 18 Apr
A three-day journey of innovation: TecSummit, 24 hours to build your prototype, and a final day to refine pitches and showcase solutions.
Registrations
9 Nov — 13 Dec
Teams register and get ready to bring their ideas to life.
Roadshow
9 Nov — 4 Dec
We travel across Portuguese universities to spark the next generation of innovators.
Ideation
4 — 22 Jan
Participants structure their ideas with the support of specialized mentors.
Final
16 — 18 Apr
A three-day journey of innovation: TecSummit, 24 hours to build your prototype, and a final day to refine pitches and showcase solutions.
Mentorship
22 Feb — 23 Mar
Finalists receive technical and strategic guidance to refine their projects.
Selection
10 Feb
Projects are reviewed and the most promising ones move forward.
In the News
Aftermovie
Categories
Connectivity
This category invites participants to build solutions that use the power of 5G to improve everyday life and strengthen communities. The aim is real-world impact, whether that means safer and more sustainable cities, healthcare that responds in real time, smarter and more connected mobility, immersive entertainment, or new learning opportunities for people in remote areas.
Customer Service
Across Colibri, Controlauto and Via Verde stores, customers arrive with different needs, levels of urgency and types of requests. The challenge is to rethink the entire service journey (before arrival, at check-in, while waiting and during service) exploring how digital and physical channels can work together to reduce waiting times, automate repetitive tasks and help teams serve more customers efficiently.
IT Rewired
Behind every insurance policy, health claim and customer interaction at Fidelidade, there is IT making it happen. This category challenges teams to use emerging technologies, from AI to automation, to make IT smarter, simpler and more effective. Think of AI that keeps the company’s Technology Radar always up to date, assistants that solve IT requests on their own, or tools that make complex systems easy to understand. It’s about rethinking not only how IT works today, but how it can enable the services of tomorrow.
Energy
This category challenges participants to develop innovative digital solutions for energy and mobility, aligned with Galp’s sustainability goals. Using technologies such as AI, IoT, blockchain and automation, teams will optimise how energy is produced, stored, shared and consumed, and turn their ideas into real-world prototypes that support the energy transition.
Defence and Security
From the open ocean to borders, critical infrastructure and disaster zones, security teams need to monitor vast areas and act on information in real time. Drones and sensors now collect more data than any team can analyse, often in environments where communications and GPS cannot be trusted. The challenge is to use AI and autonomous systems to turn raw data into clear, timely intelligence that helps protect people, infrastructure and the environment.
Luxury Retail
This category challenges participants to rethink what happens beyond the counter in luxury retail: how every product is forecast, stocked, moved and authenticated on its way from workshop to boutique to client, and how it is cared for long after the sale. Using the emerging technologies of their choice, teams will build solutions that make luxury retail operations smarter, from predicting demand and placing the right piece in the right boutique to protecting authenticity and extending the life of each product.
Powered by JUNiTEC
TecStorm is a brand of JUNITEC, the Junior Enterprise of Instituto Superior Técnico. Our core business is technological consulting, connecting university talent with the business world. In 2026, JUNITEC received the Junior Enterprise of the Year award from JE Portugal and Most Sustainable Junior Enterprise by JE Europe.
Testimonials
TECSTORM was an intense, inspiring, and hugely rewarding experience from start to finish!
The journey started long before the 24-hour marathon, it took weeks of preparation, planning, and dreaming big as a multidisciplinary team. Pushing our limits together, guided by incredible mentors and backed by top-tier resources, made every single challenging moment worth it. There’s something so special about bringing ideas to life when surrounded by such passion and dedication.
Huge thank you to JUNITEC for creating a space where teamwork, creativity and big dreams thrive!
Margarida Pina
TecStorm’26 Winner (Vodafone)
TecStorm was an amazing experience that went far beyond the final 24 hours. After the competition, we got the chance to present NetZero to companies like Unicre, connect with industry experts and even take part in the Startup World Cup. It opened doors we never expected.
Afonso Coelho
TecStorm’26 Winner (Unicre)
We didn’t win TecStorm 2026. But we left with something we didn’t expect: a much clearer idea of what we want innovation to mean.
Taking VITA4ALL to TecStorm was intense. Long hours, difficult decisions, uncertainty, exhaustion, and a lot of moments where we had to trust each other and keep going.
But TecStorm gave us much more than a result. We were incredibly lucky to have mentors from Vodafone and Noesis who challenged our ideas, shared their experience and helped us grow throughout the process. And a huge thank you to the TecStorm 2026 organising team for creating such an incredible environment.
Most importantly, we met amazing people: students from different universities and countries, professionals from the tech industry, and people who shared the same curiosity and passion for building something new.
VITA4ALL may not have won the prize, but it gave us something far more personal: confidence in our team, new friendships, lessons we won't forget, and a stronger belief in the kind of technology we want to create.
Betânia Pavlowski, Daniel Cardoso, Rafael Ferreira, Tiago Cunha and João Gomes
TecStorm’26 Finalists
TecStorm was much more than just a competition for me. It was where an idea we genuinely believed in was pushed from something on paper into something real. It gave us the opportunity to step outside the traditional academic path and create something of our own, something innovative.
Having only 24 hours to build, test, fail, rethink and ultimately present our solution was intense, but it showed me how much can happen when you put motivated people together and give them the space to create. And it wasn’t just within our team, it was honestly the whole environment. Teams were constantly helping each other out, sharing advice and going through those sleep-deprived hours together :)
More importantly, TecStorm became the starting point of a journey that continued long after the event ended. What began there as LumiNation grew into a project we kept developing and believing in. Looking back, that is probably what TecStorm meant the most to me. It didn’t just give us a weekend to build something. It gave us the push to keep building it afterwards.
Vasco Pires
TecStorm’26 Finalist
FAQs
Each category features a dedicated powerbank full of ideas on its respective page. Feel free to explore it by visiting the categories section.
All transportation expenses will be covered for participants requiring travel from mainland Portugal. For all other participants, we will contribute up to €40 towards their travel expenses.
All necessary technical materials will be provided.
Our mentors will ensure you have the right tools to develop a pitch and a business model.
You can onboard with a project that is already in progress but not yet completed. The project's progress will be one of the key factors evaluated.
Foreign participants are accepted without restrictions, all students are welcome to participate.
No, it is not required. Teams may choose to present their pitch either in Portuguese or in English.
You can register individually, and we'll match you with a team later.
We provide accommodation for all finalists who are not from the area.
You can still participate if you completed your university studies less than one year ago.
You can participate with multiple projects, but only one will be selected.
The evaluation will be ongoing and will consider various factors, such as progress during the competition, the prototype, a pitch, and a business model that will be presented to a jury panel.
No, the registration is individual, so each member of your team must register. Later, on the official platform, you will have the opportunity to form groups as you wish.