During last year's hackathon, I experienced the joy of creating a product while challenging myself with development tools I had never used before. Working with teammates I already knew deepened our relationships, making it a wonderful experience. The completed product received far more positive response than I expected, which was incredibly encouraging.

It was my first time participating, but the clear theme of addressing administrative challenges gave us direction. Working closely with my teammates, we were able to turn our ideas into something tangible. After much trial and error, we ultimately developed it into a service—an invaluable experience that gave me a deep sense of achievement and confidence.

Participating in the Governor’s Cup gave me the opportunity to turn an idea I had been nurturing for a long time into a concrete project. Through presenting our work, I received diverse feedback and gained new perspectives I hadn’t considered—insights that helped shape the idea into a more practical and impactful service.

I felt a deep sense of achievement in realizing that my technical skills could contribute to addressing social issues. Experiencing the power of AI and open data firsthand made me strongly aware of their potential in driving real-world solutions. Collaborating with a team was truly inspiring, and it reminded me of the value of creating something together with others.

This was more than just a development contest—it gave me a deep appreciation for the significance and excitement of tackling public and social issues through open data. I had the chance to express my creativity while connecting and collaborating with many people in the civic tech community. The sustained engagement and thoughtful support throughout the process were also incredibly reassuring.

Having clearly defined administrative challenges helped guide my efforts, even though I was new to working with open data. The organizers provided thoughtful support not only during the hackathon but also in the social implementation phase afterward, which allowed us to enhance the quality of our product. It was a meaningful experience that marked my first step into the world of civic tech.

It was a large-scale event that brought many meaningful encounters. Unlike typical short-term hackathons, this format allowed us to spend time carefully developing our plans. We were able to engage continuously with Tokyo Metropolitan Government staff and refine our proposal into something truly feasible. It was a rare and valuable opportunity to engage deeply and thoughtfully with the challenge.

We developed an app that visualizes children’s cafeterias and walking maps using open data from the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. Facing social issues through data and working positively as a team to tackle them was a valuable experience—one that gave me strong motivation for future activities.