On February 7, Telethon will take place, a hackathon on Telecommunications, that is, a technology competition in which the challenge for teams of undergraduate students is to characterize a 5G use case in one of the identified economic sectors. The event will start at 9:30 a.m., at the Técnico Innovation Center (Alameda Campus), Arco do Cego, Av. Duque de Ávila 417, 1000-135 Lisbon.

The objective is to familiarize students with Telecommunications from a global perspective, under the motto “Learn, Build and Transform Telecommunications”.  Case studies are defined for several economic sectors, which will be characterized through a set of analysis axes, each with specific questions to be answered.  The teams’ work is structured into three phases, according to these groups.  Participants are expected to present innovative solutions from the perspective of implementing the proposed case studies.

Telethon is organized by the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering of Instituto Superior Técnico, with the support of partner companies: HUAWEI, MEO, NOKIA, NOS and VODAFONE.

Prizes

• 1st Prize, monetary, in the amount of 5,000 euros per team, and certificates for the members;
• 2nd Prize, monetary, in the amount of 3,500 euros per team, and certificates for the members;
• 3rd Prize, monetary, in the amount of 2,000 euros per team, and certificates for the members;
• Honourable Mentions for 2 teams, in the amount of 500 euros per team, with certificates for the members;
• One internship offered by each partner, for the members of each of the 5 finalist teams.

All participating students will receive participation certificates and gifts from the partner companies.

Applications

Undergraduate students in the areas of Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Electronics, Telecommunications and related fields may apply.

All applicants must submit proof of enrolment in an undergraduate degree at any higher education institution in Portugal in the 2025/2026 academic year.  Teams must include at least one member who speaks Portuguese.

Applicants must organize themselves into teams of 3 to 4 members.

Applications will be open from January 5 to January 18, 2026.

Schedule

• 2026-Jan-05: opening of applications;
• 2026-Jan-13: webinar (5:00 p.m.) to clarify questions from applicants;
• 2026-Jan-18: closing of applications;
• 2026-Jan-23: announcement of the selected teams;
• 2026-Jan-26: start of the mentoring week;
• 2026-Jan-28: webinar (5:00 p.m.) presenting an example of a case study analysis;
• 2026-Feb-07: competition to be held in person at Técnico Lisboa.

For more information, please visit the Telethon website.