LIAOYE 燎野International Youth AI Hackathon CLUB

Yes — total beginners are welcome. Liaoye IGNITE 48 (the 48-hour youth AI hackathon camp) is the entry point built for beginners: no coding needed beforehand, kids start from Vibe Coding on-site and mentors handle the technical support. Liaoye doesn't start from syntax precisely because kids don't need to code first; they use AI to build their ideas right inside a project. Real AI projects also need problem-spotting, research, product, design, expression, video and hardware roles, so no coding never means no participation — and parents don't need to know AI or sit in on the project. The long-term Liaoye AI-Native Program is not a beginner entry point: it requires completing IGNITE 48, or an online talent assessment by application through our advisor.

Finish a first complete project on stage, then think long-term — no coding needed first. Step one: use a focused block of time to finish that first project — Liaoye IGNITE 48 (the 48-hour youth AI hackathon camp: ages 8–18, two daytime days on-site, no coding background required, Vibe Coding from the start, mentors on hand throughout, and a pitch to the judges at the end). Families who can't make the two days on-site can take the same-level online alternative, the One-Day AI Build Consulting & Co-Creation (Liaoye AI Builder Day, online, 1 day, 8 hours, also open to beginners). Step two: once your child wants to keep going, the Liaoye AI-Native Program — not a beginner entry point; entry is through IGNITE 48 or an online talent assessment by application through our advisor. When Liaoye runs a city meetup near you, it's also a good first look at what kids their age are building.

Yes. Liaoye is for youth aged 8–18 — primary, middle and high school students are all welcome, and an 8-year-old registers online for the 48-hour camp just like older kids. Beyond building, teams need product ideas, user research, design and pitching, so younger kids have a real role. One of Liaoye's 9-year-old students teamed up with Shenzhen high-schoolers and took 1st in the Youzan superrun track at Adventure X.

No. The 48-hour camp is two daytime days on-site — 09:00 to 17:30 each day, with no all-nighters.

Start from a real problem, team up within a time limit, build a working product prototype with AI, then pitch it to judges. At Liaoye IGNITE 48, for example: on day one kids learn Vibe Coding in the morning and build three apps — web, desktop and networked — then team up on-site and start their project in the afternoon; on day two they sprint on the Demo, use AI to make a pitch deck and product site, deploy it publicly, let people on-site try it and fix what they find, and finally pitch to judges from tech, investment and industry.

You can register for the 48-hour camp online on this site. The fee is CNY 2,980 per student for the two days, including both lunches, AI tools and tokens, mentor support throughout, the pitch session with judge feedback and a completion certificate; travel and accommodation are not included. Free charity places for youth from families in hardship are set up with the Guangdong Guangren Tongxin Public Welfare Foundation. At the Chengdu and Shenzhen stops, competing parents are charged separately (lunch included) — confirm the amount with our advisor. For the long-term AI-Native Program and the overseas tour, reach us on WeChat for dates, seats and fees.

The way in is different. A kids' coding class usually teaches syntax and algorithms first, then builds up projects along a set curriculum; an AI hackathon starts from a real problem and has kids build the idea directly with AI and tools — training problem-finding, product judgment, collaboration, expression and iteration. Beginners can build something first and come back to code, debugging and deployment inside a real project. Coding fundamentals still matter; they're just no longer the only door in.

Yes, for families who want their child to actually build something. Liaoye is a project-based option: kids learn by doing inside real projects — teaming up on-site, building their own AI work, pitching on stage and taking questions from judges with different perspectives — which trains problem awareness, collaboration, expression and turning ideas into real work. Unlike a typical class, there's no fixed syllabus of tool demos and no template projects. Total beginners and kids from age 8 are welcome — they start at the 48-hour camp, which needs no coding background; the fee is CNY 2,980 per student for two days, lunches, AI tools and mentor support included.

The Liaoye AI-Native Program (formerly the 3-Month Online AI Hackathon Program) is Liaoye's long-term project program, run as 3 + 3: two phases of 3 months each — AI Apps first, then AI Hardware, and Phase 2 requires completing Phase 1. Each phase uses multiple real projects as its training ground, so across different projects kids repeatedly go through the whole process, from finding a problem to pitching and reflecting. Both phases include mentor support, competition windows, bilingual pitching and real-world connections. Liaoye IGNITE 48 is the 48-hour youth AI hackathon challenge camp and the main way into the AI-Native Program; if attending in person isn't possible, children can also apply to our advisor for the online talent assessment. The AI-Native Program is not a beginner entry point — complete beginners start at IGNITE 48, which requires no coding background at all.

Yes — at the Chengdu and Shenzhen stops, which run as a 48-Hour Family AI Hackathon: parents can join as official Builders, building one project together with their child, or each bringing a problem they genuinely want to solve — kids take on problems from school, daily life or their interests; parents take on problems from their own work, industry or real life. Parents can also sign up on their own, without a child. Parents need no coding or AI background. Parents' projects are pitched and reviewed by the judges too, but are not entered for awards. Parent participation is optional; kids can still join on their own. Competing parents are charged separately (lunch included) — ask our advisor for the amount. Choose "Parent + child" or "Parent only" when registering online; families who already registered keep their place and can upgrade through our advisor.