Kenya's Biggest App-Developer Challenge: Hack-A-Milli Campaign
2025-07-14 08:00 - 2025-09-25 23:30 (Africa/Nairobi) | Pan Pacific, Westlands Nairobi, Nairobi, Westlands, Kenya
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The Innovation Engine: Hack-A-Milli
​The Hack-A-Milli campaign is Kenya’s biggest app-development challenge, an intensive sprint to build the next generation of digital solutions for the country. Powered by KeNIC (Kenya Network Information Centre) and MetaCap AI, this initiative called upon the nation’s brightest developers, coders, and innovators to create a cutting-edge .KE mobile application. The core mission was to enhance the accessibility and utility of the .KE domain space, making domain browsing and registration seamless and intuitive for every Kenyan.
​Registration and Submissions
The official challenge period for registration and development ran from July 14th and officially concluded with the submission deadline on August 31st.
​The response from Kenya’s vibrant tech community was overwhelming, underscoring the passion for local digital innovation. Over the course of the challenge period, the campaign saw a total of 461 registrations from individuals and teams across the country. This intense development phase culminated in 50 innovative project submissions by the 31st August, all competing for the massive KES 1,500,000 total prize pool.
​The Rigorous Judging Phase
​Following the submission deadline, a rigorous judging process—which included expert panel and AI evaluations—was carried out. The final evaluations concluded on September 12th. Submitted projects were meticulously assessed based on core criteria, including Innovation, Technical Excellence, User Experience, and Market Potential, ensuring that only the most viable and well-executed applications advanced.
Watch the Judging Process here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HCTQX7eSPY

University and College Represented
The Hack-A-Milli drew a rich mix of universities and academies from across Kenya. See the list below:

Kisii University
Karatina University
Dedan Kimathi University of Technology
Jomo Kenyatta University – JKUAT
Baringo National Polytechnic
KCA University
Kabarak University
Machakos university
Zone01 Kisumu Hub
Technical University of Kenya
Strathmore University
Zetech University
University of Nairobi
Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology
Kibabii University
Multimedia University of Kenya
Mount Kenya University
Kirinyanga University
Daystar University
Embu University
Kenyatta University
Moi University
University of Eldoret
Kiriri Women’s of Science and Technology
St. Paul’s University
Baraton University
Muranga University
Chuka University
Technical University of Kenya
Kenya Highlands University Friends
United States International University
The Open University
Baringo Polytechnic
Garissa University
Africa Nazarene University

​Grand Finale: The Award Ceremony
​The ultimate climax of the campaign was the spectacular inaugural Hack-A-Milli Award Ceremony, held on Thursday, September 25th, at Pan Pacific Serviced Suites Nairobi. The event was a powerful celebration of Kenya’s digital future, recognizing the talent that is poised to drive the country’s domain and tech space forward.
​We are incredibly proud to celebrate the remarkable achievement of our Grand Winner and runners-up:
Grand Winner – Daniel France Makala (Kabianga University)
1st Runners-up – Elijah Kibuchi (Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology)
2nd Runners-up – Seth Makori (Technical University of Mombasa)
3rd Runners-up – Asman Caleb (Kenyatta University) and Sam Arita (Moringa School)
4th Runners-up – Emilio Cliff (Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology)
5th Runners-up – Victoria Gikonyo (Kirinyanga University), Rosemary Njeri (Strathmore University), Ian Okumu (Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology) and Gloria Ngure (Kenyatta University)
