Adobe University Hackathon 2026 Winners: SNU, IITs Top 3

The Adobe University Hackathon 2026 winners are out. Team Overclocked&Underpaid from Shiv Nadar University (SNU), Greater Noida, won the Grand Finale at Adobe’s Noida office on 16 October 2026. Each member takes home a MacBook Pro.

IIT Guwahati’s Team Cyclops came second (a MacBook Neo for each member), and IIIT Delhi’s Team 0xAlpha was announced third. That’s out of more than 3 lakh registrations on Unstop and 8 teams in the finale.

These results were announced at the finale and shared with us by a finalist team. Adobe hadn’t posted an official results list online when we published this. We’ll add the link here when it does.

Detail	Info
Grand Finale	16 October 2026, Adobe office, Noida
Winner	Overclocked&Underpaid, Shiv Nadar University (MacBook Pro each)
2nd place	Cyclops, IIT Guwahati (MacBook Neo each)
3rd place	0xAlpha, IIIT Delhi (no separate prize)
Teams in the finale	8
Registrations on Unstop	3,01,050
Every finalist got	Adobe backpack, bottle, diary and pen, Echo Dot, hackathon T-shirt
Next	PPI and internship chances for the top 50 (2028 batch only)
Official page	Adobe University Hackathon 2026 on Unstop

Adobe University Hackathon 2026 winners: top 3 teams

Place	Team	Team lead (on Unstop)	College	Prize
1st	Overclocked&Underpaid	Adya Singhal	Shiv Nadar University, Greater Noida	MacBook Pro for each member
2nd	Cyclops	Daksh Bhutani	IIT Guwahati	MacBook Neo for each member
3rd	0xAlpha	Saksham Bansal	IIIT Delhi	Recognised at the finale, no separate prize

The team names and team leads are the same as in the Round 4 shortlist on Unstop. Each team had 3 members.

A small note on 3rd place. Adobe’s official prize list only ever had two prizes: the winner and the first runners-up. So IIIT Delhi’s team was announced third on stage, but there’s no MacBook for 3rd. They still get the same finalist kit as everyone else (below).

A private university beat two IITs

This is the part worth talking about. The winning team isn’t from an IIT. Shiv Nadar University is a private university in Greater Noida, and its team finished ahead of IIT Guwahati and IIIT Delhi.

It’s the same lesson as Team Nexora from Aditya University, Surampalem, reaching the final 8. Rounds 3 and 4 were about building a working product and showing it in a 5-minute demo. The judges looked at what you built, not where you study.

So if you’re from a college that isn’t on the “top 10” lists, don’t assume this hackathon is out of reach.

Team Nexora, Andhra Pradesh’s finalists

Team Nexora (G Sriraj, Dhanush K and A Ajarya Paul) from the Department of CSE, Aditya University, Surampalem, was the only team from Andhra Pradesh in the Grand Finale. They didn’t make the top 3, but being one of 8 teams out of 3 lakh registrations is a big result on its own.

Team Nexora’s table at the finale venue in Noida. Photo: Team Nexora (used with permission)

Our earlier post has the full list of the 8 finalists and how each round worked.

What every finalist got from Adobe

Apart from the prizes, every member of all 8 finalist teams got the same goodies kit:

• An Adobe-branded backpack (made by Hummel)
• An Adobe water bottle
• An Adobe diary with a pen
• An Amazon Echo Dot (Alexa smart speaker)
• An Adobe University Hackathon 2026 T-shirt

The kit every finalist got. Photo: Team Nexora (used with permission)

On top of this, Adobe paid for the finalists’ travel and stay in Noida. Adobe’s prize list also mentions “a chance at a fully sponsored Adobe office visit” for national finalists, and the finale itself was held at the Noida office.

Prizes: what was promised vs what was given

Who	Promised on Unstop	What happened
Winner	MacBook Pro for each member	Overclocked&Underpaid (SNU)
First runners-up	MacBook Neo for each member	Cyclops (IIT Guwahati)
National finalists	Adobe merchandise, office visit	Goodies kit for all 8 teams, finale at Adobe Noida
Top 50 participants	Chance at a PPI and internship (₹1,10,000 a month)	Not announced yet

What happens next: PPIs and internships

The prizes are done. The bigger thing for many students is still pending: the top 50 participants get a chance at a pre-placement interview (PPI) and an Adobe internship with a stipend of ₹1,10,000 per month.

• Only the 2028 batch is eligible for the internship PPIs, as per Adobe.
• It’s “a chance at” a PPI, not a confirmed offer.
• Adobe hasn’t shared dates yet. Keep an eye on the email you registered with and the Unstop page.

We’ll update this post when the PPI process starts.

My take: should you try next year?

Yes, if you’re in 2nd or 3rd year of B.Tech. This year showed that a private university team can beat IITs, and that a team from Kakinada district can reach the last 8.

Three things to do before registrations open (they opened in July this year):

• Build one real project with a working interface. Rounds 3 and 4 asked exactly for this.
• Practise a 5-minute demo. Show the main feature in the first 2 minutes.
• Keep your DSA basics ready for the Round 1 MCQ and coding test.

If you’re preparing for regular off-campus hiring as well, see our TCS NQT October 2026 post.