Learn in the textbookPractical Methods for Idea Generation and Validation
DefinitionA hackathon (ハッカソン) is a co-creation event where developers, designers and others gather to build prototypes intensively over a short period and compete on how good they are.
ExplanationParticipants split into teams of a few people and, following the organizer's theme, go straight from generating ideas to building a working prototype. The event usually lasts from one day to a few days, and ends with teams presenting their results for judging. Companies sometimes host one to bring in outside talent and ideas and to look for seeds of new services.
AnalogyIt is like the day before a school festival, when each class finishes its show in the limited time left, then performs it and compares how well it turned out.
Memory hookA blend of hack (cleverly building a program) and marathon (running a long course to the end).