Everything started when Zuckerberg first blogged, “Let the hack begin”. Now the act of hacking has been turned into a culture with a vast amount of members. The 3rd annual Facebook Hacker Cup has just opened up for registration, signifying the beginning of an exceptional show for hackers all around the world. The price has doubled this year to a whopping $10,000, as well as the title of King of the Hackers and a lifetime entitlement to bragging rights. This year’s Hacker Cup is bound to draw a tremendous amount of attention in the tech world. Hackers will battle it out in this event "for fame, fortune, glory and a shot at the title of world champion," says Hacker Cup Facebook page.
The registration period will take place from January 7th to January 27th and the online qualification round will be from January 25th to January 27th. There are three online elimination rounds, timed at February 2nd, February 9th, and February 16th. The finalists will be invited to the Facebook campus at the Hackerway in Menlo Park.
Although Facebook has gone through IPO and crossed the milestone of 1 billion users, it has never strayed from its original mission and goals. “Hacking is core to how we build at Facebook. Whether we’re building a prototype for a major product like Timeline at a Hackathon, creating a smarter search algorithm, or tearing down walls at our new headquarters, we’re always hacking to find better ways to solve problems,” says Facebook Hacker Cup page. This displays a sure sign of Facebook not only wanting to keep the hacker culture going, but providing people with a platform to succeed as well.
In 2011, about 12,000 hackers signed up and competed around the world, with the top 25 finalists including both developed and developing nations around the world. This year we will be expecting even more. “Many will enter... only one will emerge as world champion,” states the Facebook Hacker Cup page. Good luck to those who are brave enough to enter and congratulations to those skilled enough to advance.
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