UIDAI Data Hackathon 2026 Highlights Innovative Data Solutions for Inclusive Governance
UIDAI Hackathon Showcases Digital Identity Innovation
The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has concluded the UIDAI Data Hackathon 2026, celebrating student-led innovations focused on digital identity and improved public service delivery through data-driven governance solutions.
Organised to encourage innovative and responsible use of digital identity data, the hackathon offered students and young professionals an opportunity to create scalable solutions aimed at strengthening inclusion, governance efficiency, and service delivery outcomes.
The initiative received a massive response, with close to 15,000 teams registering and over 5,000 teams submitting entries, making it one of the largest data innovation challenges within the Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) ecosystem.
The competition involved a multi-stage evaluation process, including screening more than 5,000 submissions, shortlisting 30 projects, and detailed assessment of 15 finalist teams. The top five teams were invited to present their projects during the final event.
The winning team from the Institute of Engineering and Management, Kolkata, and the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Kolkata, presented a detailed analysis of aggregated Aadhaar enrolment and update datasets provided by UIDAI.
Their project generated key insights into enrolment patterns and biometric update trends across states, regions, and demographic groups, while also offering recommendations to improve service delivery systems.
Addressing participants at the event, UIDAI CEO Shri Vivek Chandra Verma praised the teams for combining analytical excellence with a strong focus on public interest. He said such innovations could support both policy and operational improvements, while stressing the need for responsible and ethical use of data to enhance inclusion and governance efficiency.
Verma also shared UIDAI’s vision of turning the Data Hackathon into an annual initiative to encourage innovation in digital identity and public data applications.
Future editions of the hackathon are expected to expand participation beyond students to include researchers, academia, start-ups, and other non-academic contributors, creating a broader and more interdisciplinary innovation ecosystem.
The UIDAI Data Hackathon 2026 reflects UIDAI’s continued focus on open innovation, youth engagement, and evidence-based policymaking. By allowing participants to work with real-world datasets, the initiative promoted both technical innovation and solutions designed for public impact.
UIDAI thanked all participants, jury members, and partners for contributing to the success of the hackathon.
UIDAI Expands Focus on Cybersecurity and Digital Innovation
In another initiative aimed at strengthening India’s digital ecosystem, UIDAI recently partnered with the National Forensic Sciences University (NFSU) for a five-year collaboration focused on cybersecurity, digital forensics, and advanced technology research. The partnership will support cyber resilience across UIDAI’s digital infrastructure through joint research, cybersecurity audits, forensic capabilities, and capacity-building programmes in areas such as AI, blockchain, deepfake detection, and cryptographic technologies.
New Aadhaar App Crosses 21 Million Downloads
In a related development, the new Aadhaar App has seen strong public adoption, crossing 21 million downloads within just three months of launch. According to UIDAI, over 28 lakh users have updated their mobile numbers through the app, while nearly 6 lakh people used it for address updates. The app enables paperless identity sharing with features such as face verification, biometric lock/unlock, authentication history, and QR-based contact sharing, aimed at improving convenience, privacy, and ease of living for Aadhaar users.