IIT Ropar’s ANNAM.AI, Syngenta and Google launch HACK CORE 2026

ANNAM.AI, India’s first Centre of Excellence (CoE) for Artificial Intelligence (AI) in agriculture, hosted at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Ropar under the Ministry of Education (MoE), Government of India, has launched HACK CORE 2026, a national AI hackathon in collaboration with Syngenta and Google.

According to the official IIT Ropar press release, the hackathon invites students, researchers, startups, developers and early-career technologists from across India to develop AI-driven solutions for crop health, pest management, soil intelligence, climate-resilient farming, and biological products.

The applications for HACK CORE 2026 will be closed on July 21, 2026. Interested candidates can register and access detailed information through the official website.

AI solutions for agriculture

The HACK CORE 2026 aims to encourage practical and scalable AI solutions that can improve agricultural productivity and sustainability in India. The winning team will get an opportunity to visit Syngenta’s Research Centre in Atessa, Italy, and gain exposure to advanced biological research facilities and technologies.

Winning teams will also receive Google Cloud credits to access infrastructure, data tools, AI resources and software support for their projects.

Participants will further receive mentorship and research support from agronomy experts from ANNAM.AI and Syngenta.

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36-hour build sprint at IIT Ropar

One of the key highlights of the hackathon will be a 36-hour “Build Sprint” to be conducted at IIT Ropar. Shortlisted teams will work with researchers, industry experts and educators to convert their ideas into working prototypes that can deliver practical benefits for farmers. The sprint is designed to help participants build scalable solutions that can be implemented at the ground level.

Focus on sustainable farming

Pushpendra P Singh, the project director of ANNAM.AI at IIT Ropar, highlighted that sustainable and climate-resilient agricultural practices are becoming increasingly important and said: “As agriculture is now moving to more sustainable and climate-resilient practices, biological products are emerging as a key alternative to traditional crop protection solutions. By harnessing AI-tech, we innovators have an opportunity to help farmers improve productivity while enhancing environmental sustainability. By partnering with the world’s leading agricultural innovation company, Syngenta, HACK CORE 2026 brings together India’s brightest innovators to build practical, technology-led solutions that can help solve some of the most pressing challenges faced by farmers today.”

The organisers said the initiative aligns with the Government of India’s vision of using advanced technologies to strengthen the agriculture sector and improve farmer livelihoods.

The national-level hackathon will support India’s digital agriculture goals by encouraging AI-backed innovations that promote smarter decision-making, higher productivity and sustainable farming practices, the IIT Ropar press release said.