Dawid Tambor is an experienced entrepreneur who has spent the last decade focused on developing companies in traditional industries such as construction and interior design. His work mainly involved introducing foreign brands to the Polish market and promoting Polish products on international markets. Despite the fact that for years he operated in sectors with established, conservative sales channels, his curiosity and passion for new technologies was constantly growing. Finally, the moment came when he decided to take a step in a new direction, which led him to participate in one of the largest stationary hackathons in Europe – HackYeah!

Where did the idea to take part in HackYeah come from?
 DT: I have always been interested in modern technologies, but in my industry there were not many opportunities to move to the digital reality. However, I noticed an advert for HackYeah and decided it was worth a try, to see what it looks like up close, to meet people from the technology industry. This event was held in Krakow, so without any major plans I decided to take part.

What was your first impression when you entered HackYeah?
 DT: The atmosphere was incredible! The people there were so passionate and enthusiastic. I immediately felt that this event was different from your typical business conference. The energy and positivity were contagious. The experience made me feel like I was part of this community right away.

What did you do after entering Tauron Arena?
 DT: I looked around at the sponsor booths, struck up a few conversations, and met people from the industry. Then I attended the opening ceremony. Then I participated in a team building session, even though I had no technical experience. I showcased my project management, communication, and sales skills, which seemed irrelevant to the competition tasks. To my surprise, a young computer science student named Oleksandr approached me. He was also attending a hackathon for the first time, and he was as confused and excited as I was. He invited me to join his team. We were an unusual group, young tech enthusiasts from Ukraine and a graying businessman from Poland.

How did your collaboration go?
 DT: Initially, we didn’t know each other, so we had to get along. I presented my workflow to the team, which they liked. We wrote out tasks and got down to work. I was in charge of contacting mentors to better understand the goals of the task, while the rest of the team was coding. We worked all night, exchanging ideas and experiences. Although we didn’t manage to complete the entire plan, what we created gave us great satisfaction.

What did your project ultimately look like?
 DT: The project involved analyzing news from the internet to detect repetitive content and eliminate what could be fake news. We didn’t manage to complete the entire plan, but we prepared a prototype that worked 70-80%. The presentation I prepared was well-received by the team, although our project ultimately didn’t make it to the finals. Despite that, it was an amazing experience for us.

Did the project continue after HackYeah?
 DT: No, this project had no chance of further development. However, this event inspired me to dust off an idea that I had earlier, but was rejected by my friends, experienced programmers. I contacted Oleksandr, a guy from the HackYeah team, and offered him to work on this idea as a startup. Within a month, we had a working prototype ready, which was a huge surprise for me. Since then, we have been working on this product, which is already in the testing phase and will soon be released on the market.

What did you take away from participating in HackYeah?
 DT: This experience gave me, above all, a huge motivation to get involved in the world of technology. The atmosphere of this event pushed me to establish a company and fully devote myself to working on our startup. What I experienced there changed my approach to technology and business.

Would you recommend attending HackYeah to others?
 DT: Of course! I highly recommend HackYeah to anyone interested in technology, apps, and programming.

So will we see each other at this year’s 10th edition of HackYeah?
DT: Yes, we plan to take part in this year’s edition with the whole team. We will come to feel this amazing atmosphere and recharge with positive energy. We haven’t chosen a task yet, but we will definitely want to feel this thrill again.

What advice would you have for potential participants?
 DT: If someone wants to join spontaneously, I recommend getting there as early as possible so you have time to look around and find something that interests you. HackYeah is not just about coding, it’s also a great opportunity to learn something new and meet fascinating people.

 

Z wykształcenia teatrolożka, z zawodu specjalistka ds. marketingu. Odważnie odkrywa nowe ścieżki w dynamicznej branży technologicznej. Współtworzy wyjątkowe konferencje i hackathony, które inspirują i łączą programistów z całego świata.