The week before
Scope
Turns your idea, or one from the generator, into a 2-hour plan: the one feature, what to fake, the time blocks, what to cut and your first prompt.
Works in Claude app and Claude Code
Good Vibes · Vibeathon guide
How to prepare for a vibeathon
A vibeathon is a hackathon where you build with AI tools. At Good Vibes you get two hours to build and 60 seconds to show it, so what you do before the night matters most. This is our hackathon for beginners guide: get an idea made for you, a prep plan, the right tool and a first prompt.
Hackathon ideas, made for you
Tell us what you're into and how you like to build. You'll get three vibe coding ideas sized for two hours, each with a first prompt to paste and a demo script.
Your vibeathon prep plan
Hackathon tips for a two-hour build. Tick things off as you go; your progress is saved on this device.
0 of 24 done
The week before
Pick your idea
Two hours goes fast. People who arrive with an idea demo something; people who decide on the night often don't. Use the generator above.
Create your accounts and check your free-plan limits
Sign-up emails, verification and credit limits eat the first half hour if you leave them to the night. Check how many messages or credits your plan gives you.
Do a 10-minute test run: build, deploy, share a link
You'll find out how your tool publishes an app before it matters. Knowing where the deploy button is saves you at 7:55pm.
Practise asking your tool for a plan before it builds
Most tools have a Plan mode that maps out the pages and data without changing anything. Check the plan, then say go: it saves you from a wrong first build.
Write your 3-sentence demo before you build
If you know what you'll show, you know what to build. Everything not in the demo can be faked.
Gather your content: copy, images, sample data
Sample data makes a demo feel real. Ask another AI chat to write 20 realistic sample records before the night.
Register on Luma
Spaces are limited, and you'll get the venue details and any updates.
On the day
Bring your laptop and charger
Plug sockets go quickly; arrive charged.
Log in to everything before you leave
Two-factor codes and forgotten passwords are the most common slow start.
Save your first prompt somewhere you can paste from
Your first prompt does most of the work. Write it calmly at home, not in a noisy room.
Doors
5:30pm
Find a seat and tell the people next to you what you're building
Saying it out loud sharpens the idea, and you'll have help nearby when you get stuck.
First prompt
6:00pm to 6:20pm
Paste your first prompt and get version 1 deployed
A live link in the first 20 minutes means you always have something to demo.
Build
6:20pm to 7:40pm
Build one core feature from start to finish
One thing that works beats three that half work.
Fake the logins, payments and data
Nobody at a demo checks the database. Sample data and pretend sign-in are fine.
Save versions as you go
Most tools have version history or checkpoints. Save after each thing that works.
After two failed fixes, go back to a saved version or start a new chat
AI tools can confidently say a bug is fixed when it isn't. Going back is faster than arguing.
Get it working before you make it pretty
Styling is quick at the end; broken logic is not.
Redeploy as you go
Your live link should always be your latest working version.
Feature freeze
7:40pm to 8:00pm
Stop adding features
New features at 7:50pm are how demos break.
Rehearse your demo twice
Sixty seconds goes quickly. Know your three clicks.
Take screenshots in case it breaks
Wi-fi and AI tools both have bad moments. Screenshots save the demo.
Demos
8:00pm to 8:30pm
Give a 60-second show-and-tell
It's friendly, not a pitch. Show what it does and one thing you learned.
After
Share your link and tag Vibe.je
Other builders want to see it, and it's a good record of what you made.
Come back to the next event!
Your second build night is always better than your first.
Pick your tool and first prompt
Three questions, one recommendation. Set it up before the night.
Have you coded before?
What are you making?
Do you have a paid plan for any AI tool?
We'd pick
Lovable
You describe the app in plain English and it builds and publishes it. The gentlest start if you've never coded.
Free plan: 5 build credits a day, up to 30 a month. (checked Oct 2026)
Plan first: Pick Plan in the mode picker next to the chat box (Option+P on a Mac, Alt+P on Windows). It plans without changing your code; each plan message uses a credit.
- Sign up at lovable.dev
- Start a test project from a one-line prompt
- Press Publish and open the link on your phone
Open Lovable Or try Bolt
Starter prompt template
Build a web app called [name]. It is [what it is] for [who it's for]. The one thing it must do: [the core feature]. Use sample data and the browser's storage instead of real logins, payments or databases: [what to fake]. Style: [the look, e.g. clean and friendly, big type, mobile first]. Before you build anything, show me your plan: the pages, the data and what you'll fake. Wait for me to say go.
Fill in the brackets, or pick an idea above and it fills itself in.
Free Claude skills for your vibeathon
Four Claude skills that do the prep with you: scope your idea, set up a live app, get unstuck mid-build and write your demo. Free to download, no sign-up.
The night before
Starter
Sets up a Next.js app, saves it to git and deploys a preview to your own Vercel account, so you start the night with a live link.
Works in Claude Code
During the build
Unstuck
When something breaks: one clear fix prompt, the two-fix rule, and a fresh-start prompt if it's time to go back to a version that worked.
Works in Claude app and Claude Code
The last 20 minutes
Demo
Writes your 60-second show-and-tell, the order to click things in, and the screenshots to take in case it breaks.
Works in Claude app and Claude Code
Install in the Claude app
- Turn on code execution in Settings, then Capabilities. Skills need it, on any plan including Free.
- Go to Customize, then Skills, and click +.
- Choose Create skill, then Upload a skill, and pick one skill's zip. Upload each one separately.
- Ask Claude, for example: “Use vibeathon-scope on my idea”.
Install in Claude Code
- Download all four and unzip.
- Move the four folders into
~/.claude/skills/. - Start Claude Code and type
/vibeathon-scope, or just describe your idea.
Vibe hackathon FAQ
What is a vibeathon?
A vibeathon is a hackathon where you build with AI tools instead of writing every line of code yourself. You describe what you want, the AI builds it, and you steer. Good Vibes is Jersey's vibeathon: two hours of building, then a 60-second demo each.
What's the difference between a vibe hackathon and a normal hackathon?
A normal hackathon usually runs 24 to 48 hours and assumes you can code. A vibe hackathon is shorter and open to anyone, because AI tools like Lovable, Bolt or Claude Code do the heavy lifting.
Do I need to know how to code?
No. Many people at Good Vibes have never written code. Pick a beginner-friendly tool such as Lovable, set it up before the night, and use the idea generator to get a project sized for two hours.
How does a hackathon work?
You arrive, pick or bring an idea, build it in a fixed time, and show what you made at the end. At Good Vibes, doors open at 5:30pm, building runs from 6pm to 8pm, and demos run from 8pm to 8:30pm.
Can you use AI at a hackathon?
At most hackathons it depends on the rules. At a vibeathon, using AI is the point. Be ready to explain how you used it in your demo.
What should I bring to a hackathon?
Your laptop and charger, your accounts already set up and logged in, your first prompt saved, and any sample content you want in your app.
How do I win a hackathon?
Build one thing that works and show it clearly. In a short event, a small idea that runs in a 60-second demo beats an ambitious one that doesn't. Rehearse your demo and keep screenshots as a backup.
Can I come on my own?
Yes. Plenty of people build solo, and you can team up on the night if you'd like to.
Want to see what people built? Browse all Good Vibes events.
Next event
Good Vibes #3
TEKEX presents: A Builder's Hack Night with Vibe.je. Sponsored by Pinpoint.
- Date
- Thursday, 12 November 2026
- Doors
- 5:30pm
- Venue
- BDO Jersey, Winward House, La Route de la Libération, St Helier
Starts in 26 days, 19 hours and 20 minutes
Hosted at BDO · with TEKEX · sponsored by Pinpoint
