Canadian Open Data Experience Winners Demonstrate Innovative Spirit

Winners tackle coding challenge and share in $40,000 in prizes

TORONTO, March 26, 2015 /CNW/ - After 48 grueling hours of coding and an intense day of presentations to a panel of judges, the Canadian Open Data Experience (CODE) hackathon winners were announced at a ceremony held at The Burroughes Building in Toronto. The Grand Finale event marked the final step of the hackathon presented by XMG Studio Inc. and the Government of Canada.

CODE is a hackathon that focuses on using open data to accelerate innovation and improve Canadians' lives by connecting people to information and services. This year competing teams demonstrated this focus through apps that re-imagine useful data from open.canada.ca for Canadians looking to make informed choices about their career, health and business decisions.

About 1300 tech enthusiasts from across the country competed during the hackathon. From a field of over 300 teams, the Top 15 were invited to present their ideas live to a panel of industry experts. The Grand Prize was awarded to Team Niew Labs with their application Career Path by Niew Labs. The application is aimed at helping Canadian youth discover, research and choose future career paths. The team consists of Jigdel Kuyee, Rob McDiarmid, and Daniil Shevelev of Toronto and Lev Perelman of Vaughan, ON. 

"CODE 2015 has been an inspiring experience, showcasing a wealth of Canadian talent, from developers and designers to budding entrepreneurs," said the Honourable Tony Clement, President of the Treasury Board and official facilitator of CODE. "All participants demonstrated the potential open data has for job creation, opportunities in the high tech field, and future innovation."

CODE was pleased to award the following prizes:

• $15,000 for the CODE Grand Champion:
  • Team Niew Labs with Career Path by Niew Labs
• $5,000 for Category winners:
  • Commerce: Business Opportunities:
    • Team Farm Canada with Farm Canada - Location: Calgary, AB - Participated virtually
  • Quality of Life: Healthy Living
    • Team Neighbourfood with Neighbourfood
      Location: Vancouver, BC - Participated from Vancouver VIP HUB
  • Youth: Youth Employment
    • Team Niew Labs with Career Path by Niew Labs
      Location: Toronto, ON - Participated virtually
• $5,000 for the Best Student Team Submission:
  • Team SFU Data Crunchers with High School Down, Where Next?
    Location: Burnaby, BC - Participated virtually
• $5,000 for the Fan Favourite:
  • Team Bear Paws with COFY
    Location: Richmond, BC – Participated from Vancouver VIP HUB
    

The winners were picked from the top 15 entries of over 300 teams from across Canada. They were selected by a team of industry experts, evaluating each application by its user experience, use of open data and market potential.

"Congratulations to this year's CODE winners, who represent the best of Canadian-made talent. Their original applications showcase the unlimited potential of open data—an important part of our government's plan for Canadians to take advantage of opportunities in the digital age," said the Honourable James Moore, Minister of Industry and CODE facilitator. "We will continue to provide Canadians with the tools and skills they need to excel in an increasingly digital economy."

CODE 2015 hackers participated across the country through the three VIP HUBs and Partner HUBs, or by participating virtually from their homes, schools or local coffee shops. CODE 2015 would not be possible without the support of sponsors and like-minded organizations: the Government of Canada, IBM, Cognition LLP, Communitech, Digital Ocean and Namecheap, as well as the CODE VIP HUB Location Sponsors BCTIA, Notman House, and OneEleven.

To learn more about the teams and their submissions, please click here. For more information on CODE: www.canadianopendataexperience.ca

Click here to download B-roll of the CODE Pitch Day presentations. Pictures of the CODE Grand Finale will also be available for download on March 27^th, 2015. Please visit: canadianopendataexperience.ca/GrandFinale

About XMG Studio:
XMG Studio Inc. is an award-winning developer and publisher of mobile games. Founded in late 2009, XMG has developed a track record for innovation excellence in mobile gaming including the release of critically acclaimed games downloadable on your iOS, Android, and Windows Phone devices. Based in Toronto, XMG is one of the largest indie mobile game studios in Canada. Named as one of the top global mobile games developers to watch by popular media, XMG is focused on providing creative expression through gameplay for all fans of fun.

SOURCE CODE 2015: Canadian Open Data Experience

media can contact: Lydia Schaele, XMG Studio Inc., 647-526-5630, Lydia [at] xmg.com; Samantha Tam, High Road, 613-697-9272, Samantha.tam [at] highroad.com