Twelve spots, five hours, one brief nobody has seen before. You build at noon and pitch at night in front of an audience. With AI, at vibe-coding speed.
Regular applications have closed. The reserve list is for spots that become available at short notice. If your profile fits an available spot, we will contact you.
RESERVE LIST · VCA26 · 5 NOVEMBER 2026
Four short steps: how you compete, what you build with, a project link and your contact details. One project you built is enough.
Solo or as a team, bring your strengths. Let us know if you are open to joining a team. If a spot becomes available, we will discuss whether there is a suitable match.
Joining the reserve list and competing are free. There is no age limit; anyone in Europe can register.
If accepted: Be in Cologne from noon on 5 November. Five hours to build, up to four minutes for your brand: present live or show a video, animation or AI-generated pitch. You do not have to go on stage yourself. Your pitch is available as a recording afterwards.
You are on the 2026 reserve list. We will contact you if a suitable spot opens up. Your place is only confirmed when we accept you in writing.
Your answers are still here. If you need help, write to farzan@vibecodeawards.de.
How we handle your data is in our privacy policy (German).
We look at your idea, strengths and the part you owned.
We contact you to discuss availability, setup and any questions.
Your spot is only confirmed at this point. Joining the list does not secure a place.
Everything about the schedule, tech and permitted tools. The brief stays secret until the competition.
Nobody can prepare. Everyone finds out what to build in the room, at the same moment.
"So, we need something new. Has to look fresh, modern, you know the thing. Not like the others. Just do something."
Vague, real, the way clients actually brief. Nobody sees it beforehand.
Everyone starts with the same brief. There are no follow-up questions or additional documents.
Five hours to bring your idea to life. Then you submit your result.
For guests the doors open at 5 pm. Your day starts earlier. This is the only page with times on it, and they apply to you.
Come fed, there's no lunch break. In the first hour the FAIME video team shoots your intro video and you set up your spot. We test power and network beforehand.
At 12:50 everyone heads to the stage together for the rules. At 13:00 the brief is read out, to all twelve at once, and the clock on the LED wall starts.
Five hours, your laptop, your tools. Your people stand around the Arena, nobody else.
The doors open while you build the last hour. The countdown runs on the LED wall.
Time's up. Your screen stays on and becomes part of the gallery. The audience vote for the People's Choice opens.
Straight after building, so you don't wait long. Two blocks with keynotes in between. The spotlight decides when you're up.
Four trophies, one stage. Before that the jury deliberates while keynotes run in the hall. Then the bar, and nothing left to hand in.
Free during the day and evening, no cap on numbers, with you from 12:00. During the day they stand around the Arena and watch you work. From 5 pm they're in the middle of the audience and vote in the People's Choice.
You tell us how many are coming once you're confirmed. That's all we need.
12 SPOTS · SOLO OR TEAM
The work block sits under the chandeliers, set up like a LAN party. Until 5 pm only your people and those of the other spots are around you. Then the guests come in, walk the rows, see the screens and hear you argue. Lounges run all the way around, where they sit down and keep watching.
The jury judges the result. Not the team size, not the number of assets and not the length of the prompt.
Solo or team: up to four minutes for your brand. You decide how to present it and when your vision has come across clearly. A shorter pitch is just as welcome.
Twelve spots, two pitch blocks with six presentations each. We order the spots by number of people: the first six go into Block A, the next six into Block B. You get your block at kickoff, and the spotlight decides the order within it that evening. Solo, agency, studio or matched team: everyone competes for the same Grand Prix.
Get creative: a live presentation, video, animation or AI-generated pitch. Show what makes your brand special. Nobody has to go on stage themselves.
SIX PITCHES · TO OPEN THE EVENING
The first six spots, ordered by number of people, present first, right after the jury is introduced. Solo means one person; a team has two to four people.
SIX PITCHES · AFTER THE SECOND KEYNOTE
The next six spots present after the second keynote. This includes matched teams. The same criteria and pitch time apply to everyone.
WHAT HAS TO BE DONE BY THE END
Positioning and the central creative direction.
A visual base system plus a key visual.
A published, working landing page.
Up to four minutes for your brand: live, as a video, animation or AI-generated pitch. Nobody has to go on stage themselves.
Bonus, not required: 3D, motion, video, social assets or a clickable prototype can strengthen the idea. More output doesn't automatically mean more points.
That's one half. The other half sits in the room: the audience hands out the People's Choice, with no criteria grid and no obligation to explain. Both prizes can go to different builds. That's on purpose.
Everyone who competes gets their own intro video on event day, shot by the FAIME video team: line-up, a short turn, a card on the LED wall. Like sport, only what you make here is a build. The cards below show the setup. The real builders arrive once the twelve spots are taken.
SPOT 01 · SOLO
STACK Claude Code, v0, Supabase, Vercel
SPOT 02 · SOLO
STACK Figma, Midjourney, Framer, Cursor
SPOT 03 · TEAM · 4 PEOPLE
STACK Figma, Webflow, Runway, Notion
SPOT 04 · TEAM · 3 PEOPLE
STACK VS Code, Claude, Blender, Cloudflare
Regular applications have closed. About the reserve list for spots that become available.
These six judge your build. The full profiles are on the award day page.
FORMBURG · Webflow Educator
Watches for design and motion. And for the human part: the love of detail that no prompt creates on its own.
Creative Director · Brand Designer
Asks about the idea behind the project, and whether your design makes the brand tangible.
Kabarza · Design Engineer
Judges storytelling, brand, structure and UX. So he asks what your build can do, and whether it all fits together.
Product Builder · AI Enthusiast
Looks under the hood: tech, accessibility, and whether anyone can find your build.
FLOK · Designer & Brand Owner
Asks whether your idea understands the brand's real challenge. And whether AI stays a tool rather than an end in itself.
BeAStar Productions
Invented the format. So he knows exactly where five hours start to hurt.
However the day ends, a spot is not a raffle ticket with a certificate at the end.
0 €
Joining the reserve list and competing are free. You bring a laptop, chargers and your own tool accounts, we provide the rest. Twelve spots, handed out one by one.
UP TO 4 MINUTES
Up to four minutes for your brand in front of the audience and jury. You decide whether to present yourself or show a creative media pitch. Plus your own intro video, shot at noon by the FAIME video team.
4 TROPHIES
Four trophies cross the same stage at night: the open Grand Prix for the best overall product, the room's People's Choice and one each for the best solo and the best team of the day. Behind each one is a prize: a paid client job for the Grand Prix, the Solo Bounty for the best solo, content by Be A Star Productions for the best team, merch of your own brand for all. A matched team competes for the same trophies as any other. All prizes at a glance.
Regular applications have closed. The reserve list lets us contact you if a suitable spot becomes available at short notice. Joining the list does not confirm a place.