Comporium Sponsors the Technology Incubator at Knowledge Park’s “Great IoT Hackathon of 2018”

ROCK HILL, S.C. (January 25, 2018) – Imaginations were unleashed on January 12, 2018 as 30 students from local high schools and colleges embarked upon a multi-month hackathon focused on automating everyday devices. Comporium is proud to present The Great IoT Hackathon, billed as the world’s longest Internet of Things (IoT) hackathon, which kicked off last Friday afternoon in downtown Rock Hill, SC.

Hosted by Rock Hill’s Technology Incubator at Knowledge Park, Wired Hack 18.1-4 challenges the technical skills and creativity of each student to transform the Technology Incubator space into what may be the world’s first “connected” technology incubator using custom built IoT technology. Friday’s kickoff was just the beginning — this endeavor is a 4-month collaborative interdisciplinary hackathon, with bi-weekly mini-events and another 24-hour wrap session in April.
“Exciting things are happening in Rock Hill’s Knowledge Park,” said Matthew Dosch, Comporium’s Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. “With the support of institutions like Winthrop University, York Technical College, and the Technology Incubator, entrepreneurs are pursuing innovative ideas and taking their concepts to market. As a provider of IoT services to our customers, Comporium is pleased to be able to sponsor this event and work with these very talented individuals.”

Dr. Andrew Besmer, Assistant Professor of Computer Science at Winthrop University stated, “We are so excited to be able to work with Comporium to offer this one-of-a kind experience. Students will be working on cutting edge hardware and software to build IoT devices similar to those being developed at Research & Development labs across the country. We are eager to see what they will come up with.”

Students from Winthrop University, York Technical College, and Rock Hill Schools are participating in this year’s hackathon. They were given predetermined project ideas, such as programming an IoT infrared blaster to turn on TVs, as well as the liberty to explore their own ideas for further creation of IoT technology. Besmer says students will be “challenged to work creatively, technically, and most important collaboratively, to transform the Technology Incubator.” Participants will be able to take home the devices they build, in addition to over $100 of IoT-related hardware.

After the first 24-hours of caffeine-fueled coding and creating, judges gave the initial scores for projects submitted. Jeremy Proffitt of LendingTree and Edward Granger of Red Ventures sat on the panel of judges that recognized two teams for their functionality; the LED Strip Game team, comprised of Brett Pittman, Taylor Foxx, Elijah Flowers and Kenzie Hoyle, and the IR Blaster team, Philip Nelson, Blake McCLoskey, Adam Van Scyoc, Tim Stafford and Haley Berry. . Another team, the Sensor team—Michael Speiser, Matea Milojkovic, Antonio Santos, Sybrina Outhay and Megan Taite–was lauded for their excellence in planning.

Wired Hack 18.1-4 ,the Great IoT Hackathon, will conclude on April 20, 2018 with another overnight coding event as participants wrap up their projects. For more information about Wired Hack 18.1-4, please visit http://wiredhack.eventbrite.com or contact Winthrop University’s Andrew Besmer ([email protected]). #GreatIoThackathon #techforward #knowledgepark

###

Comporium, Inc., headquartered in Rock Hill, S.C., is a diversified, privately-held communications company providing broadband, TV, voice, wireless, smart home systems and advertising services throughout the Carolinas. Comporium seeks opportunities to invest in, and integrate, technologies on the leading edge of innovation. Comporium creates partnerships with companies providing fiber transport and business solutions, data storage and managed services, smart devices and connected home/car services, and digital signage. For more information, please visit www.comporium.com.