2026-08-31
On paper, running hackathons is a terrible way to build a recruiting company. They're expensive. They take a lot of work. You need venues, sponsors, food, judging, operations, and a hundred tiny things that go wrong. So why keep doing them? Because the signal is insane.
A resume is static
A hackathon is the opposite.
You get to watch people make decisions. Some teams spend five hours arguing about the idea. Some start building immediately. Some people become the unofficial technical lead without anyone assigning them the role. Some builders keep the entire team moving. Some quietly disappear.
You learn a lot.
Founders notice this too
We've had founders meet builders through DevLabs environments and eventually work with or hire them.
That was one of the earliest signals that DevLabs could become more than a community. Companies didn't only want access to our Discord. They wanted access to the people they saw building.
That distinction matters.
Events are part of the talent network
Most talent platforms start with a database and try to enrich it.
We can start with real environments where builders show up and make things. That is harder to scale. But it also creates a type of signal that's hard to scrape from the internet.
So yes, DevLabs is moving into hiring. We're still going to put builders in rooms together. It might actually be one of the biggest reasons the hiring product can work.