Next Hackathon
AMD AI League
Starts Sep 1, 2026
Launch and Fund Your Own Startup – Edition 1
Operation X402: Payments Unleashed
Join our $1M startup challenge series powered by Surge
⏱️ 6 days to turn your idea, or existing product, into an investable demo.
🌟 Get feedback from startup mentors and technical experts.
🤝 Join solo or with a team. New founders and existing startups are welcome.
🏆 $50,000 in SURGE token prizes, plus visibility and fast-track funding.
🧑💻 Apply now to build, validate, and pitch with purpose.
Each edition features a unique technical theme, high-stakes prizes, and an intensive bootcamp-style build cycle, all designed to take you from idea → demo → pitch → funding.
Your mission is to build and launch an AI-native product using X402 Payments - a programmable payments infrastructure designed for the next generation of agentic and automated economies.
In this edition of Launch & Fund Your Startup, you’ll have 6 days to validate an idea, build a working prototype, and present a credible path toward real users and on-chain revenue.
This challenge is open to everyone - from early-stage founders to existing startups looking to expand or pivot their products.
Your submission should clearly show how your solution integrates or reimagines X402 Payments in the context of real-world financial interaction
Tracks
Choose one - or mix and match. Each track explores a core use case of programmable payments in the age of agentic systems:
🤖 Agent-to-Agent Payments
Challenge: Build a system where two or more agents autonomously trigger and settle payments—e.g., for usage-based services, access control, or dynamic pricing. Your product should demonstrate a working agentic payment loop with minimal human input.
🧑💼Consumer AI Payments
Challenge: Develop an AI assistant that can make payments on a user’s behalf—with built-in rules like spending limits, approval checkpoints, or identity verification (KYC/AML). Showcase how your product handles decision-making, compliance, and safeguards.
🏢 B2B FinOps & Compliance
Challenge: Build a tool for businesses to manage real-time payments and financial operations—like tracking cash flow, enforcing policies, or generating audit-ready records. Highlight automation, accuracy, and visibility into payment activity.
🛒 On-chain Commerce Primitives
Challenge: Launch a digital product or service with a built-in revenue model using X402. Think: token-gated access, real-time rev-splits, or instant payouts to contributors. Your prototype should demonstrate seamless, trustless commerce flows.
Technology
This hackathon centers around X402, a programmable payments infrastructure designed for AI-native startups and agentic transactions. It enables developers to build applications where payments are automated, auditable, and scalable by default.
What is X402?
X402 is designed to support:
• Agent-to-agent payment flows
• Programmable guardrails (limits, KYC triggers, conditional approvals)
• Real-time compliance tracking
• Transparent revenue distribution (splits, instant payouts)
It acts as a financial coordination layer for LLMs, autonomous agents, and multi-actor systems, making it ideal for building in the emerging machine economy.
Key Capabilities
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🔄 Programmable Payments: Embed payment logic directly into your app or agent workflow
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🔐 Policy Engine: Enforce spending rules, roles, limits, and approvals
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📜 Auditable Logs: Track payment triggers, actions, and recipients
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⚡ Fast Settlement: Execute on-chain USDC transfers instantly
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📦 Developer SDKs: Easy-to-integrate APIs and tooling
Community Choice +
"Most Fundable" mentions.
Top teams get fast-track intros
for follow-on Launch & Fund
programming.
All prizes subject to eligibility
and SURGE KYC requirements.
Community Choice +
"Most Fundable" mentions.
Top teams get fast-track intros
for follow-on Launch & Fund
programming.
All prizes subject to eligibility
and SURGE KYC requirements.
Community Choice +
"Most Fundable" mentions.
Top teams get fast-track intros
for follow-on Launch & Fund
programming.
All prizes subject to eligibility
and SURGE KYC requirements.
What to submit?
📋 Basic Information
• Project Title
• Short Description
• Long Description
• Technology & Category Tags
📸 Cover Image and Presentation
• Cover Image
• Video Presentation
• Slide Presentation
💻 App Hosting & Code Repository
• Public GitHub Repository
• Demo Application Platform
• Application URL
For further details and guidance, please visit Submission Guidelines
Hackathon Details
Join lablab.ai hackathon and innovate using the latest models in the market. Discover all the relevant details below.
🗓️ Where and when
The start date of the hackathon is mentioned according to the date specified on the hackathon page, cover and schedule. The hackathon will take place on the lablab.ai platform and lablab.ai Discord server.
🦸🏼♂️ Who can join?
Everyone is welcome to participate, regardless of previous AI or coding experience! We encourage anyone with a passion for AI or an interest in exploring how it can be used in their field to join.
😅 What about teams?
If you don't have a team, don't worry! You can connect with other participants from all over the world on our dashboard or Discord server. We also recommend checking out our Discord server to find teammates and bounce around ideas. You can join the server here.
🛠️ How to participate
The hackathon will take place online on lablab.ai platform and lablab.ai Discord Server. Please register for both in order to participate. To participate click the "Enroll" button at the bottom of the page and read our Hackathon Guidelines and Getting Started Guide.
🧠 Get prepared / Use Lablab.ai to Learn About AI
To get ready for the hackathon, visit our AI Tech pages and read up on all the available technologies. You can also check out our tutorials page for more information on how to use them. Get a head start on your project by using the resources on lablab.ai!
Speakers, Mentors & Judges
Event Schedule
- To be announced
Next Hackathon
AMD AI League
Starts Sep 1, 2026