Post-Contest Gap
The period between the contest's conclusion and any implementation action. After winners were announced, builders received no follow-up, no guidance on moving to production, and no communication about which projects the company planned to support — leaving motivated builders waiting indefinitely with no path forward. It's a cluster of problems: no implementation coordinator, no shared API or data access, no technical handoff for non-technical builders, and no broader company communication about what was being pursued.
iConnections
iConnections — Internal Research
Vibecodeathon
Participant Feedback Report
A synthesis of builder interviews from iConnections' first internal AI hackathon
Conducted by Alia Doyle  ·  Prepared for Ron Biscardi
65 participants  ·  15-minute interviews  ·  As of July 9, 2026
⚠ Preliminary — 59 of 64 interviews completed
Executive Summary
The Big Picture
65 participants, 15-minute interviews, one consistent signal: the contest worked — the follow-through didn't.
59/64
Interviews completed
~8
Projects already live
87%
Positive overall sentiment
The contest worked — builders built real tools, felt engaged, and discovered what AI can actually do.
The #1 complaint: the contest ended, winners were announced, and then nothing. Closing the post-contest gap is the most urgent fix.
The submission process (Ellis/bot) cost multiple participants their submissions and needs a full rethink.
The skill gap between technical and non-technical builders was wide — mandatory pairing and upfront tutorials are the fix.
The strongest projects were small and already live — future contests should reward deployability over ambition.
Key Themes
What Participants Liked Most
Hover any bar to see what each category means.
Pain Points & Friction
Ranked by how many people raised it — hover any bar for the full description.
Where Projects Stand Now
Based on 59 interviews — click any segment to see who's in each group.
34 of 59 builders interviewed have no clear path forward — stalled or fully paused post-contest.
Already live Actively building Stalled / waiting No next steps
Project Status at a Glance
Already live — 8 participants
Actively building — 9 participants
Stalled / waiting — 14 participants
No next steps — 16 participants
Click any segment to see who's in each group.
Suggestions for Next Contest
What Builders Would Change
Ranked by frequency — every item here was raised by multiple people independently.
Feature & Product Ideas
What Builders Want Built Next
Additional ideas raised during interviews — not contest submissions.

Click a segment to see ideas from that team

Vibecodeathon Participant Feedback Report  ·  Conducted by Alia Doyle  ·  July 2026
Preliminary — 59 of 64 interviews completed. Findings may shift as remaining interviews are added.
All quotes drawn directly from call transcripts and written responses.