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Tech Talent Champions

Hackathons, meetups and big Sussex dates

We come to the rooms Sussex tech already trusts, and we bring a few of our own. Every event is a chance to meet the talent, meet other Tech Talent Champions, and see the model working in person.

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A team huddled around a laptop at an evening tech event

Be part of a hackathon

Our hackathons are where candidates prove themselves on real challenges, and where Tech Talent Champions get first sight of the talent. No CVs in the room, just work being done. Employers who take part consistently tell us it beats any interview process they've run.

Built around real vacanciesWe group confirmed roles by theme and design each hackathon around them. Post a role and the challenge takes shape.
Judge and mentorJoin a hackathon panel, or the Monthly Challenge's online employer panel: one hour a month, first look at the region's best juniors.
Host an eventPut your name and your space on the map for the region's tech community.
Put forward a challengeGot a problem worth solving? We'll mirror it as a Monthly Challenge theme, never your real data, always your kind of problem.
Register interest for the autumn hackathons

Hackathon dates

Hackathon · October 2026 · Brighton

AI & Data Challenge, Cohort 1

Employer-set challenges in AI and data. Candidates validated live; Tech Talent Champions judge and meet their shortlists on the day.

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Monthly · Online

The Monthly Challenge

A themed AI or cyber challenge every month, finishing with the top four pitching live to an employer panel. Winners announced, talent validated, momentum kept.

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Hackathon · November 2026 · Eastbourne

Cyber Challenge

A simulated incident-response challenge for junior security talent, designed with our cyber employer Tech Talent Champions.

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Meetups, with our partners

Monthly, informal and free. We partner with the communities Sussex tech already loves rather than competing with them.

Meetup · Monthly · Brighton & Hove

Juniors & Coffee, with Silicon Brighton

A relaxed morning meetup: employers, mentors and new talent in one room. No pitches, just conversations that turn into hires.

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Meetup · Monthly · Eastbourne

Chalk x Tech Talent Champions

With the Chalk community: East Sussex employers meet placement-ready candidates on home turf.

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Meetup · Quarterly · Hastings

1066 Tech Social takeover

A junior-talent theme night with the 1066 community: demos from recent placements and the people behind them.

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Roadshow · Autumn 2026 · Worthing

West Sussex roadshow

The programme, the funding and the talent for West Sussex businesses. Manufacturers and logistics firms especially welcome.

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Event · Date TBC

Women in Cyber

Spotlighting the pipeline of women entering security roles, and the employers backing them. Part of our 40% women commitment.

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DigiFest · October 2026 · Brighton

Sussex's digital festival, and our biggest date of the autumn. Tech Talent Champions on stage telling their stories, a live talent showcase, and the AI & Data hackathon finale. If you come to one thing, come to this.

Register interest for DigiFest

Community partners: Silicon Brighton · Chalk (Eastbourne) · 1066 (Hastings) · plus the venues and meetup hosts who make Sussex tech feel like one team.