For our October event, join MoCo Code & Coffee for a mini afternoon hackathon as part of MLH's Hacktoberfest 2026! This year's theme is "AI Belongs to Everyone". Please consider joining us whether you've never used open source AI models before and just want to learn something together with community or you already have experience shipping models to production and are ready to hit the ground running with a project idea.
Come solo, bring a team, or find one when you arrive. Beginners are very welcome. We'll have a short intro workshop, mentors on hand, and plenty of coffee and snacks to keep you going.
Space is limited, so please RSVP early.
PLEASE REGISTER ON MLH.COM: https://events.mlh.com/events/15332-hacktoberfest-hack-day-bethesda-x-code-coffee-montgomery-county-md-chapter
Stick around after the event ends to grab your own dinner with the group at California Tortilla!
Before You Arrive Build time is short, so a little homework goes a long way: Check out MLH resources on our MLH event page for how to get started with open source models and APIs. Join the Code & Coffee Discord to brainstorm ideas and find teammates ahead of time. Please follow the welcome instructions to add the DC/MD/VA role, and post questions to the #moco-general channel: https://discord.gg/JbGyY3bKTS Need inspiration? We'll share a list of beginner-friendly project ideas on the resource page (coming soon!).
What to Bring A laptop and charger Any accounts or API keys you plan to use, already set up Your development environment ready to go (if you want to run a model locally, consider downloading it at home.) An idea, or just curiosity
Location We will be at Bethesda Green. This location is on the second floor of the Capital One Building. Enter the main building as if you are headed to Capital One, then go up the stairs to your right. PLEASE NOTE: There is no working elevator at this time, stairs only.
4825 Cordell Avenue, Suite 200 Bethesda, Maryland 20814
More details about finding the space here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1bCMFlDXsPerKpshNFZa6b7AsOveYw-ol4cjT5brEadw/edit?usp=
The event will be held in the conference room and shared workspaces of Bethesda Green. Light refreshments and snacks will be provided.
Bethesda Green is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit working to build a more sustainable local economy. As an incubator, connector, and community partner, Bethesda Green supports mission-driven startups through the Innovation Lab, helping social-impact founders grow into thriving, purpose-driven businesses. Consider signing up for their newsletter here: https://bethesdagreen.org/subscribe-to-the-bethesda-green-monthly-newsletter/
Parking Participants may park on the street or in nearby parking garages.
Public transit Located near near the Bethesda metro station (Red Line).
Presenting Your Project Sign up for a time slot at the event. The amount of time you'll have to present and time for Q&A will depend on the number of sign-ups we have. Your presentation should be to-the-point and cover three things: What was your idea? What did you accomplish? What are your next steps? Slides and a live demo are welcome but not required. We encourage you to publish your code openly. That's what Hacktoberfest is about!
Prizes and Swag MLH is providing prizes for the challenge categories, plus swag for participants. T-shirts and some other items are limited.
Keep the Momentum Going About an hour and a half isn't much build time, so treat this as a starting point! Bring your project to future Code & Coffee meetups to keep working on it with the community. For the rest of October, check out DEV Challenges, MLH livestreams, and Global Hack Week online.
Volunteers Want to help out? We're looking for volunteers to staff check-in and mentor participants. Please consider signing up here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/9040D49AFA82DA5FB6-66417791-moco
Reach out with any questions on the Code & Coffee Discord in the #moco-general channel.
MoCo Code and Coffee is an inclusive, informal, co-working session. We're community-led and community-run by devs, for devs. People of all skill levels are invited. Especially new devs!
Bring a laptop, ideas, and we'll provide the coffee and snacks.
