This is why we love hackathons. Just when you least expect it, an amazing team creates an idea that can not only make the world a better place for all – but uses awesome technology and innovation to do so.
We’re seeing a trend of developers looking to make social impact with their skills, which is why this year, we’re excited to announce the Code 4 Impact Award during our 9th Global Hackathon Series.
You can learn more about that award and the awesome prize here. In the meantime – we’re sharing projects that inspire us, in the spirit of the Code 4 Impact Award. Our latest inspiration? Team nest.id from the Realex Payments Hackathon. Learn more about this dream team below!
Hey guys! Before we dig into your project, tell me about yourselves. Who is on the team, and what do you guys do when you’re not rocking hackathons?
We have Ed, our superstar dev guy and a client of ours, he works for PropTech startup Splittable. Tyrell, our Head of UX at We Draw Pictures and my business partner in our other business 16 pixels. Phil, Senior Designer at We Draw Pictures and I’m Sam, Head of Design and Founder of We Draw Pictures. When we’re not rocking hackathons, we tend to be working on other products, trying to create amazing experiences for our clients, like the guys at Splittable and other startups, here in the UK or internationally.
Did you know each other before the Realex FinAppsParty hackathon in London? Or did you meet there? What brought you to the event?
Yes, Phil, Tyrell and myself work together daily and Ed as mentioned works for one of our clients. We really wanted to see if what we we’re doing as a day job had any place in a hackathon or if what we do daily was the right way of doing things. I think validation was another reason. Personally for me it was to validate that what we are doing is right and if it resonates with users or other product owners.
We had an amazing experience creating @nest_id @RealexPayments were still in shock and it’s been amazing! Thank you all so much!
— We Draw Pictures (@wedrawpictures) March 12, 2016
Tell us about the thought-process/brainstorm that led to Nest.id. Did you have an idea of what you wanted to do going into the event?
We got to the event after having a few discussions about what we would build, but not knowing the brief made it hard to know what to actually build. When we arrived and heard about all the different APIs available and all the different uses for them, we came up with about 5 ideas. We sat there for about an hour breaking them, like literally saying why they wouldn’t work and why they really wouldn’t be that strong. Ed planted the seed that we should create an app for migrants. We worked on 2 options for this, one as a way to dispense aid and restock and then Nest.ID began to blossom. That’s when we downed tools and went for a Nandos!
Once you settled on your idea, what challenges arose? Did you find yourselves hitting any walls and pivoting?
We didn’t really hit any walls. We approached it as we would a client project. We broke it down into the use cases, personas and flows. We went over this a few times to make it as simple and as airtight as possible. We then took the flows and created a set of wires, figured we could break the product, fixed it and began designing.
Ed, however was having his own issues integrating the PQ api and had amazing support on hand to overcome the issues and develop an awesome product.
What did each person on your team do? Who designed the awesome interface? Etc.
So Ed, the most valuable member of the team made sure we had a product. He worked nonstop, while Phil and I snuggled for an hour on a bean bag, he sat there plugging away making sure we had something of value to present. Tyrell and myself worked on creating the flows and wireframes while Phil worked on some awesome branding. I then worked on creating a visual style that worked with the branding Phil created. Phil and I then worked on implementing the design throughout the product, working closely with Ed to make sure we didn’t over design anything for the time we had to build it. We all then worked on the pitch, pulling stats and creating a structure of delivery that would align itself with what we had created. Tyrell delivered his amazing presentation and I sat at the back tapping through the phone for the big screen.
What was your favorite part of the hackathon?
I think for me personally it was the validation that we have a strong team, internally at We Draw Pictures and with our clients. That we can create amazing products and be thought leaders, creating something with a set of rules and that has real purpose. All the amazing food and drinks helped too. All the AngelHack and RealEx guys, they really put on a great event. Hearing our product name being called out was amazing too.
What are your plans with Nest.id now?
We’ve been talking about what to do next, how to go back look at the core idea and see how we can really put it to use. If there is a place for it. Some of us have been tapped for others to invest for us to build it out. I think the whole team is eager to do it, time however is not on our side. I hope we do build it out and find a way to make it happen. I think it has a place.
What else would you like us to share about your team or product with our community of 97,000 developers?
Thanks for reading, remember to follow @wedrawpictures. We hope you liked our idea and that it’s inspired some people to create something completely off the cuff or a little abstract. Remember to look at your product from more points of view than just your own, you’re most likely not the main user of the products you create. Be ambitious, be bold and be willing to not always get it right first time. For the team, I’d say it was and is daily, a pleasure to work with such talented and inspirational people, always looking to solve problems in new and inventive ways.
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