# Become a Manager of Artificial Intelligence as you learn to Work with Aliens *As Artificial Intelligence (AI) gets better, we all need to keep educating ourselves on how it can help us innovate and solve problems. At MeliaCRED, we facilitate AI workshops, hackathons, and seminars to support companies and their employees to stay AI literate as the technology advances.* Canonical: https://meliacred.com/hackathons ### The format: One day, from a problem to a working solution *A hackathon takes one day, from 9 to 17, for 15 to 150 people. Nobody needs to know how to code.* Each person works as the CEO of a start-up with a team of several AIs, such as ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Mistral and DeepSeek. At the start she gives all of them the same task, a kind of job interview, and works on with the best of them for the rest of the day. Nobody can hide behind others. The people who trust themselves least often build the most surprising solution. Whoever brings an idea sharpens it in the morning. Whoever brings none finds one on the spot: a problem in society or in their own surroundings that could be solved, but for which nobody has seen a way out so far. We deliberately hand out no ideas. Under the pressure of the day, people get creative. Everyone knows from the start that at 15:30 they will stand in front of the group for three minutes: 30 seconds for the problem, two and a half minutes for the solution. Then everyone ranks their first, second and third place on paper slips, and we count the points in front of the group on a tally sheet. The best get small, symbolic prizes, and we close with a group photo. With more than 15 participants, everyone pitches first in groups, and the best reach the final. The AI Nerds are no jury. The participants decide themselves, democratically, who among them has the best solution. The AI Nerds walk around all day, help, and keep the pitches moving. They need not have founded anything. They are people who use AI a lot and like trying new things with it. Our message to the participants: we are no high-flyers, just normal people who are a few months ahead of you. You can become an AI Nerd too, and easily. ### The day: How a hackathon day runs The shorter the onboarding block on the day, the better we prepare it. We agree on the tools in advance, and every participant gets a short guide so the accounts run on the morning itself. | Time | Block | What happens | | --- | --- | --- | | 08:45 | Doors open | Coffee and first introductions. | | 09:00 | Start | Welcome, the goals of the day, and the AI Nerds introduce themselves. | | 09:30 | Impulse talk | What has changed in AI in the last three years, which myths no longer hold, and what prompting, vibe coding and agents mean today. | | 10:00 | Tools and the task | The AI tools of the day, with accounts set up in advance. The task: find a problem that can be solved and build a solution with AI. | | 10:30 | Job interviews | Each person gives the same task to several AIs and picks her team. | | 11:00 | Build phase | Sharpen the problem, build the solution, prepare the pitch. The AI Nerds help along the way. Lunch is ready from 12:30. | | 15:30 | Pitches | Three minutes per person: 30 seconds for the problem, two and a half minutes for the solution. | | 16:45 | Vote and prizes | Everyone ranks their first, second and third place on paper slips. We count in front of the group, hand out the prizes and take the group photo. | | 17:00 | End | Everyone sends us their prompts afterwards, for the performance certificate. | ### Certificates: Performance certificates, not participation certificates Everyone sends us their prompts after the day. We check them and issue the certificates. A certificate goes to whoever meets three conditions. 1. The first prompt is an own, long prompt: own words, own problem. Asking the AI to invent a problem and then solve it does not count. 2. The prompts show that the person did not simply believe the AI. She tinkered, compared answers and worked creatively, and she went back and forth with the AIs as the CEO of her start-up of humans and AIs. 3. The person pitched for three minutes. The pitch need not be good, but it must take place. The vote on the winners is separate from the certificate. Usually about one in ten participants misses the certificate at the first attempt. Whoever misses it can take an individual make-up session within two weeks; in the end, nearly everyone who makes an effort gets it. ### Group sizes: From 15 to 150 people, the final never has more than ten pitches | Participants | Team on site | Pitches and vote | | --- | --- | --- | | Up to 15 | Two people: a moderator and technical support for quick laptop changes. | One pitch round: about 60 minutes of pitches plus 15 minutes for changeovers, then the vote. | | 16 to 20 | Three people: the moderator, one more AI Nerd and technical support. | Two groups with a first round and a vote; the best four pitch in the final, and everyone votes on the winners. | | 21 to 42 | Three to seven people: the moderator and more AI Nerds. Separate technical support is no longer needed, since two or three Nerds usually look after the technology themselves. | Groups of about seven; the best one or two from each group reach a final of six to eight pitches. | | 43 and more | The moderator and more AI Nerds; 150 participants take the moderator plus ten AI Nerds. | The same tournament, in teams of one, two or three people that we assign at random on the day. 150 participants make 75 teams in ten mixed groups; each group picks its best pitch. The final count runs on a voting tool the AI Nerds build on the day. | ### Three formats: Lectures, one-day hackathons, and the 42-day agent course We offer three types of AI training: lectures, one-day workshops and hackathons, and a six-week course in which participants build and deploy their own AI agents. **37 minutes: 37 minutes of pondering Alien News** These light-hearted talks cover the state of the art in AI, always up to date (no two talks are ever the same), and highly interactive. We cover the latest problems in AI deployment and regulatory hurdles on global AI governance. We challenge listeners to think through crucial societal trade-offs. This can be tailored to the audience and fits well as a lunch seminar or conference keynote. After this session, participants will be up to date on the latest regulatory compliance issues, may have gotten a laugh, and will have access to the highest-quality resources on the state of the art in AI. **8 hours: 8 hours of working with Alien language models** The intensive one-day workshop is not for the faint-hearted. No technical prerequisites or AI knowledge are required to participate. But the day takes on a life of its own as participants build solutions to problems from their own organisations or ecosystems. This format works well as a private workshop (15 participants) and as an ecosystem hackathon (150 participants). After this day, participants will know the strengths and weaknesses of the leading generative AI models; will have built a prototype relevant to their own work; will understand why language models can be dangerous to users and how to safeguard against this; and will thus be eligible for our 42-day agent builder course. **42 days: 42 days of deploying Alien Agents** The weekly night school builds on our one-day workshops and takes an iterative deep dive. Each session builds on the previous one, conveying knowledge that participants practise in their respective fields of expertise between sessions. We build Alien agents together. We don't dump agents on participants and their organisations. We show participants how to build, deploy and adjust AI agents at work. On the days between sessions, participants try out their agents as we improve them together each week. After this course, participants will be able to wield real-world AI change-makers: aliens that will catapult organisations into a new way of working. ### 2026: The story has shifted: from access to control In 2023 the question was how to get access to AI. In 2026 the leaders we train ask a different one: who controls it? Teams are shifting to open-source models they can run on their own terms, keeping their data, their prompts and their hard-won know-how in the house. Palantir's Alex Karp put it bluntly on CNBC in July 2026: > What the technical customers want is control over their compute, their models, their data stack and their alpha. They want to know they own the means of production. It's not being transferred to someone else. > > Alex Karp, Palantir CEO, CNBC, July 2026 That is why our menu now runs from your team's first productive hour with AI all the way to agents, open models, local use and your own AI infrastructure, including a dedicated Open Source AI workshop and a practical EU AI Act and GDPR format. ### Questions buyers ask: The short answers **Who is an AI hackathon for?** Firms, universities and regional business agencies that want their people to use AI well. Nobody needs to know how to code. We have run them for contact centres, software firms, universities, foundations and whole ecosystems, in Germany, the UK, South Africa, Ghana, Rwanda, Kenya and Ethiopia. **How long does it take, and how many people?** One day, from 9 to 17, for 15 to 150 people. The largest so far had 154 participants. Groups above 15 pitch in rounds, and the final never has more than ten pitches. **What does it cost?** Prices on request. Firms, universities and regional business agencies book single hackathons or packages of five, ten or twenty. Write to elvis@meliacred.com with the number of people, the place and a possible date. **Does it count as AI literacy training under Article 4 of the EU AI Act?** The day is built for that purpose: participants learn what the leading models can and cannot do, build a prototype on their own problem, and learn why language models can be dangerous to users and how to safeguard against it. Everyone who meets the three conditions receives a performance certificate, which documents the training. **In which languages?** English and German. The German hackathon page is at meliacred.com/de/hackathons. **What do participants say?** 133 participants have written about their day on LinkedIn; every quote on this site links to the original post. The deck at the top of this page shows them all. **What happens after the day?** Participants send us their prompts, we check them and issue the performance certificates. Those who want to go further join the 42-day agent course, a weekly night school in which they build and deploy their own AI agents. ### Your host: Elvis Melia Elvis has led more than 70 AI workshops and hackathons in the last three years, in Germany, the UK, South Africa, Ghana, Rwanda, Kenya and Ethiopia. His largest hackathon had 154 participants. He studied at the University of Duisburg-Essen and has worked with researchers in Oxford and Bonn on what AI means for services industries. He is no programmer and does not claim to build AI. In this context that does not matter: a hackathon is about applying AI, and the best AI users are often not classic IT people. Firms, universities and regional business agencies book single hackathons or packages of five, ten or twenty. Prices on request. ### 133 participant voices Every quote links to the original LinkedIn post. The first ten: > It was a privilege to meet you Elvis Melia. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and wisdom regarding AI. I gained so much, as I鈥檓 sure my colleagues did too. We are in this state of transition to a new way of working with AI - your session encourages me that we can make this work to accelerate the changes we need to make for a better society for everyone. And the opportunities for SA and Africa seem brighter than ever - we must just be smart, determined, and must act with more urgency in unlocking them. Looking forward to spending more time with you discussing GBS and AI in Africa. > > Andy Searle, Co-Owner and Director at Paladin Consulting (https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7368766191093309440?commentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Acomment%3A%28activity%3A7368766191093309440%2C7368922582064017409%29&dashCommentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Afsd_comment%3A%287368922582064017409%2Curn%3Ali%3Aactivity%3A7368766191093309440%29) > Thank you Elvis Melia for a phenomenal and really high value day. The entire team at Collective X got a tremendous amount of value from your training and we really are. very grateful that you made the effort to come to SA to spend time with us. Thank you 馃檹馃徏 > > Evan Jones, CEO at The Collective X (https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7368766191093309440?commentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Acomment%3A%28activity%3A7368766191093309440%2C7369594150003920896%29&dashCommentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Afsd_comment%3A%287369594150003920896%2Curn%3Ali%3Aactivity%3A7368766191093309440%29) > Thank you Elvis Melia it was a wonderful session and allowed for experience with multiple tools, thanks to your very insightful challenge.It was good to see how everyone's ideas took shape by allowing us to build something impactful 馃檹 > > Andeshan Moodley, Director at AMEA Technologies (https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:ugcPost:7368389530887811072?commentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Acomment%3A%28ugcPost%3A7368389530887811072%2C7369004205090516993%29&dashCommentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Afsd_comment%3A%287369004205090516993%2Curn%3Ali%3AugcPost%3A7368389530887811072%29) > Thank you for hosting an insightful workshop > > Bianca Johnson, Admitted Attorney (https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:ugcPost:7368389530887811072?commentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Acomment%3A%28ugcPost%3A7368389530887811072%2C7368632938873212928%29&dashCommentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Afsd_comment%3A%287368632938873212928%2Curn%3Ali%3AugcPost%3A7368389530887811072%29) > Thank you Elvis for guiding us through the world of AI. It was a very practical and hands on workshop. It has challenged me to continue to experiment with AI and provided me with useful tips to navigate and use the different AI models available. > > Andrew Pienaar, Investment Executive at Yellowwoods Ventures Investments (https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:ugcPost:7368389530887811072?commentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Acomment%3A%28ugcPost%3A7368389530887811072%2C7368974896506343425%29&dashCommentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Afsd_comment%3A%287368974896506343425%2Curn%3Ali%3AugcPost%3A7368389530887811072%29) > Thank you for a very informative and challenging session. > > Nicole Botha, Financial Manager at Yellowwoods Ventures Investments (https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:ugcPost:7368389530887811072?commentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Acomment%3A%28ugcPost%3A7368389530887811072%2C7368528795126992896%29&dashCommentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Afsd_comment%3A%287368528795126992896%2Curn%3Ali%3AugcPost%3A7368389530887811072%29) > You did a great job and we had a great time. Very engaging workshop! > > Philip Suskin, Co-CEO & PhD Researcher (https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7340768621331206145?commentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Acomment%3A%28activity%3A7340768621331206145%2C7340781217421664257%29&dashCommentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Afsd_comment%3A%287340781217421664257%2Curn%3Ali%3Aactivity%3A7340768621331206145%29) > Thank you for the insightful session! I truly enjoyed the time and found the perspectives on different LLMs in research both inspiring and valuable. The insights shared will definitely support my future research. > > Anton Gel盲schus, PhD - Circuit Designer | From Silicon to Signal processing (https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7340768621331206145?commentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Acomment%3A%28activity%3A7340768621331206145%2C7341204553419186178%29&dashCommentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Afsd_comment%3A%287341204553419186178%2Curn%3Ali%3Aactivity%3A7340768621331206145%29) > Thanks for the experience > > Uwase Sabrine, Accounting associate at Visions Africa (https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:ugcPost:7307833799705317376?commentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Acomment%3A%28ugcPost%3A7307833799705317376%2C7308140178307489792%29&dashCommentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Afsd_comment%3A%287308140178307489792%2Curn%3Ali%3AugcPost%3A7307833799705317376%29) > This was a great experience, Thank you for the insights! > > Mutagoma Uwase Dianah, Experienced Administrative Professional | Event Management Enthusiast |Virtual Assistant (https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:ugcPost:7307833799705317376?commentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Acomment%3A%28ugcPost%3A7307833799705317376%2C7308045779338719233%29&dashCommentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Afsd_comment%3A%287308045779338719233%2Curn%3Ali%3AugcPost%3A7307833799705317376%29) All 133: https://meliacred.com/llms-full.txt Contact: elvis@meliacred.com, +49 178 5157149, book a call: https://calendly.com/anne-meliacred --- MeliaCRED 路 Elvis Melia 路 Willbecker Str. 53, 40699 Erkrath, near D眉sseldorf, Germany 路 elvis@meliacred.com 路 +49 178 5157149 Index for AI systems: https://meliacred.com/llms.txt 路 Full text: https://meliacred.com/llms-full.txt