2024 Schedule
All sessions will be accessible via a single Zoom link. This link will be circulated to registered participants the week of the event. Deep Dive and Industry Expert Q&A sessions are designed to support brainstorming and ensure that participants understand the competition guidelines and prompts, and attendance is highly encouraged. However, only the Live Pitches and Judging session is required of all competitors.
Friday, September 27th
12:00 PM MT
Hack-A-House Kick Off
Hack-A-House will begin with a 15-minute kick off session featuring an explainer video and brief remarks from Ivory Innovations staff.
12:15 PM MT
Official Competition Prompts Released
The three prompts for this year’s competition will be released at hackahouse.org at the end of the kickoff session.
1:30 PM MT
Prompt-Specific Deep Dive Sessions
Three “deep dive” sessions - one for each prompt - will take place at 1:30 PM MT. Led by housing innovation experts from the Ivory Innovations team, these sessions are designed to help competitors get a better understanding of what the judges for each prompt are looking for.
2:00-4:00 PM MT
Industry Expert Q&A
Between 2 and 4 PM MT, over a dozen industry experts will be available for 30-minute open Q&A sessions. These sessions are intended to support competitors as they brainstorm and refine their ideas. Experts include policymakers, academics, and private-sector leaders from across the housing sector. Ivory Innovations staff will also be available during this time to answer questions.
More information about this year’s Industry Experts can be found here. Timeslots will be posted shortly before the competition begins.
2:00-4:00 PM MT
Industry Expert Zoom Q&A Sessions
*USE THE SAME ZOOM LINK AS THE KICK OFF EVENT TO JOIN INDUSTRY EXPERT ZOOM Q&A SESSIONS.
September 27th, 2:00-2:30 PM MT
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Jenny Song | Navitas Capital
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Chris Gamvroulas | Ivory Development
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Daniel Ticona | Freddie Mac
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Kent Colton | National Home Builders Association (Formerly)
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Caitlin Myhre | Freddie Mac
September 27th, 2:30pm-3:00 PM MT
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Heather Miksch | Villa
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Shkelqim Kelmendi | Housing Connector
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John Peavey | Director, Building Science, Home Innovation Research Labs
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Brian Jeppesen | WaFd
September 27th, 3:00pm-3:30 PM MT
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Laurie Goodman | Urban Institute
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Gary Geiler | City of San Diego
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Paige Roosa | Boston Innovation Office
September 27th, 3:30pm-4:00 PM MT
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Loretta Ibanez | Freddie Mac
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Andra Ghent | University of Utah
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Edward Becker | Virginia Tech
4:30 PM MT
Office Hours
Ivory Innovations team members will be available for general questions until 8 PM MT.
9:00 AM MT
Submission Deadline
Submissions are due at 9 AM MT. For teams, only one team member should upload the team’s submission. Participants are strongly encouraged to upload their presentations at least 15 minutes before the deadline to accommodate any technical issues that may arise. Submissions must be in the form of a PPT or a PDF attachment. Late submissions will not be accepted.
9:30 AM-12:00 PM MT
Live Pitches
All competitors must join the judging session by 9:25 AM MT. After self-sorting into breakout rooms based on their chosen prompts, each team or individual will present their submission live to their peer competitors and a panel of judges. Judging sessions will conclude at noon MT. Learn more about this year’s judges.
12:00-1:30 PM MT
Judging
Judges will deliberate and select winners from 12:00 to 1:30 PM MT. Please ensure that at least one member of your team is available for a Zoom call with the judges in case they have questions about your presentation.
2:00 PM MT
Winner Announcement
Three $3,000 winners - one for each prompt - will be announced live on Zoom. Winning teams will be asked to remain on Zoom following the conclusion of the Winner Announcement to coordinate travel details for the Ivory Prize Housing Innovation Summit, where the three prompt winners will present in person to a live audience for selection of this year’s Grand Prize winner.
Voting Ends at 12:00 PM MT
People's Choice Award Voting
Voting for the $1,000 People’s Choice award will be open for one week beginning on the Monday after the competition. The award goes to the submission that receives the greatest number of votes when voting closes at noon MT on Monday, October 7. All submission slides will be made publicly accessible here on the Hack-A-House website, and the link to the voting form will be added here and shared via email.
Monday, September 30th to Monday, October 7th
12:30-4:00 PM ET
Ivory Prize Housing Innovation Summit
Co-hosted with Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies, the Ivory Prize Housing Innovation Summit will take place from 12:30 to 4 PM ET at Harvard’s Graduate School of Design. At the Summit, each winning team will present their submission to a live audience of entrepreneurs, academics, and other housing professionals. After hearing the pitches, the audience will vote to select a Grand Prize winner from among the presenting teams. The Grand Prize winner will receive an additional $2,000. Ivory Innovations will cover the flight and a hotel stay for the three prompt-winners.
Friday, October 25th
8:00-9:00 AM MT
Office Hours
From 8-9 AM MT, an Ivory Innovations team member will be available to answer any last-minute questions related to submissions, live pitches, and the judging process.