Westmeath Independent
Partners
Partner
with us
HackAthlone is Athlone’s local event of the NASA Space Apps Challenge: 48 hours at TUS Athlone, from 13 to 15 November 2026. Local businesses, councils, colleges and community groups help us run it, and meet the students and young professionals who take part.
The form takes about 5 minutes.
HackAthlone 2025
Last year
in the news
More than 200 people from across Ireland spent the weekend at TUS, with teams from Trinity College Dublin, UCD and the University of Limerick.
Also in Irish Tech News (opens in a new tab)
- registrationsplus 18 on the waitlist
- 270
- teamsup from 22 in 2023
- 50
- projects submitted to NASAfor global judging
- 33
- global nominationsour best year yet
- 4
Source for the numbers: official NASA Space Apps records.
Since 2023
Who we’ve
worked with
These organisations helped HackAthlone grow from 148 registrations in 2023 to 270 in 2025.
TUS
Venue and event partner, every year since 2023
XR4U
Community and event partner
ADAPT Centre
Community partner
Engineers Ireland
Community partner
RUN-EU
Event partner
TUS Works
Local collaborator
GDG Athlone
Local collaborator
DesignBrew
Design and community partner
Deedu
Knowledge partner
Way To India
Travel partner
Ways to partner
Six ways
to help
Pick one or several, in money or in kind. We shape every partnership with you.
Fund the weekend
Sponsor the event, a prize or a meal, or give food and drinks, T-shirts, swag or printing in kind. Feeding 200+ people for 48 hours is our biggest cost.
In 2025, TUS Works gave ten €250 prizes for our first local challenge.
Share your expertise
Send mentors, judges or volunteers from your team. Run a talk, workshop or bootcamp, or set an industry challenge.
In 2025, GDG Athlone ran AI sessions and sent a pitch mentor. In 2024, DesignBrew ran a storyboarding workshop.
Give teams better tools
Free access to your platform, tools or credits, or hardware and computing for the weekend.
Every year, TUS opens its labs, 3D printers and XR headsets to all teams.
Meet the participants
Set up a stand for careers, internships or demos. 200+ students and young professionals spend the whole weekend in one building.
Spread the word
Tell your staff, students or community about HackAthlone. A post, an email or a poster all help.
In 2025, GDG Athlone invited its members through its community page.
Back teams after the weekend
Help promising projects with incubation, grants or follow-on work.
After 2025, TUS Works ran the 45 Day Challenge webinars to help teams keep building.
Your own idea
Not on the list? Tell us what you have in mind, and we’ll work it out together. It could be transport for teams travelling in, a photographer for the weekend or a space for a meetup.
In 2024, Way To India joined as our travel partner.
What partners get
What’s in it
for you
Credit for your support
At the event and on our social media, in the run-up and over the weekend.
Time with 200+ participants
Students and young professionals from across Ireland, in one building for 48 hours.
A place to show your work
Show your products, tools or expertise to people who build things.
Industry and academia in one room
Meet the mentors, judges and lecturers who come along.
A stronger local tech scene
Help grow tech and STEM in Athlone and across Ireland.
Other things we agree on
Anything else that suits your organisation, agreed formally in writing.
Kind words
From partners
and judges
Leading the ‘Storyboarding for Success’ workshop at HackAthlone was an incredible experience! The room was bursting with creativity and energy. From wild ideas to boardroom-ready storyboards the transformation was inspiring. We may have even been tempted to steal a few ideas ourselves!
The standard of the projects were phenomenal. We take absolutely nothing back from the weekend except the fact that in 48 hours a couple of people with a few bites of pizza and caffeine can do amazing stuff!
In my years with TUS, I have been so inspired & impressed by the enthusiasm and the intelligence of young people. So when I look around and I see projects like these, I know the future’s in really good hands, and you guys were amazing, so well done!
How it works
Three steps
to the weekend
Tell us how you’d like to help
Fill in the form (opens in a new tab). It takes about 5 minutes.
We talk it through
We’ll email you to find the right fit.
We agree it in writing
Then we credit you in the run-up to the event and over the weekend.
Good to know: you’d be partnering with HackAthlone, the local event, not with NASA. Space Apps rules mean partners can’t present it as a NASA partnership or use NASA logos.