Students of the Faculty of Economics (FEC USB) took part in the international hackathon KreativEU Hackathon: ‘Inherit the Past. Code the Future’, which took place in the city of Svishtov, Bulgaria, on May 26-28, 2026. The event was held at the D.A. Tsenov Academy of Economics and was part of the activities of the European university alliance KreativEU.
The hackathon focused on connecting artificial intelligence, cultural heritage, creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship. 23 students and 7 mentors from the partner universities of the KreativEU alliance participated in the program. The participants were divided into five international teams that worked on digital solutions supporting the presentation of the cultural and historical heritage of Svishtov, but other places as well.
The first day of the program was dedicated to the opening ceremony, introduction of the participants and preparation for the main competition part. The program included a workshop called ‘AI in Business Decision-Making’, a KreativEU incubating event, as well as networking activities directly in the city of Svishtov, including a Scavenger Hunt and the Gelsoft Crossfire team game. These activities helped the participants better understand the city, its history and cultural context, which they subsequently worked with when creating their projects.
The main part of the hackathon started on the second day and lasted 24 hours. During this intensive technological marathon, the teams developed their ideas, consulted with mentors and prepared functional prototypes and final presentations. This all resulted in projects focused on, for example, interactive AI avatars, virtual reality, sustainable tourism, smart tourist routes or new ways of working with cultural heritage.
The third day of the program included the final presentations of the teams, evaluation by a professional jury and the ceremonial announcement of the results. The student projects were evaluated by a jury consisting of experts in the fields of culture, archaeology, software architecture and data analytics.
Students from FEC USB made a significant impact in the international competition. The first place went to the team called Zemlja, whose member was Kristýna Moravcová, and the second place went to the Glagoli team with the LocAIa project, whose member was Vítek Hošek.
The Zemlja project is a design of a mobile application using artificial intelligence to promote cultural heritage and tourism. The application allows visitors to discover historical sites through interactive storytelling, virtual historical avatars, audio guides and multimedia content adapted to different age groups. The pilot version is focused on the city of Svishtov, which aims to make local history and culture visible at an international level. The project also supports the protection of cultural heritage through its digital preservation, the development of the local economy through tourism and the creation of a modern and attractive experience for visitors.
The LocAIa project, presented by the Glagoli team, is a design of a cultural and tourist application using artificial intelligence to create personalized routes around the city. Instead of a regular list of sights, the application will prepare a route for visitors according to time they have available, mode of movement, mood and interests. The pilot version was also focused on the city of Svishtov and its cultural heritage. The application includes an interactive map, audio narration, an AI guide that responds only on the basis of verified local descriptions, and the ability to save visited sites as a personal collection of experiences.
In addition to the competition itself, the hackathon also provided its participants with valuable experience working in a multicultural team, developing a project under time pressure, and presenting their own ideas in front of a professional jury. The final part of the program was also dedicated to networking, feedback, and reflection, during which the participants shared their experience and discussed possible further development of the created prototypes.
