For international hackers and tech geeks in Tokyo, there seems to be little to no accommodating gatherings being conducted in English. A few people in the international community of developers who aren’t proficient in Japanese struggle to find a suitable event to join. That’s where Junction Tokyo comes in.
Junction Tokyo, organized by the same team behind Slush Tokyo, is Japan’s only international hackathon. Since its conception, Junction Tokyo has gradually been building a community of both developers and partner companies. “It’s uncommon to see a gathering of this scale in the context of a hackathon,” tells us the Junction Tokyo Lead Organiser, Fong Chee Fai.
At Junction, the concept of hackathons is taken to the next level. “Not only do we have a responsibility to the community, we have a responsibility to the society as a whole. Putting these two together, we facilitate both the adoption of the latest technologies and the attention to various, topical issues,” elaborates Chee. “We encourage the hackathon community to tackle social and environmental issues. To name an example, one of this year’s topics deals with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, which, for a hackathon, is fairly unusual.”
The event provides participants with international opportunities. “Participating in Junction Tokyo not only gives you the opportunities to mingle with local and international developers but also gives one access to the international network of events and community,” explains Chee. “Last year, the winner team of the Japan Airlines track won themselves a trip to Junction in Helsinki. They ended up winning there as well!”