May 2025 - May 2026
driving innovation forward
From reviving flagship events to expanding hands-on learning, this period marked a high-impact phase for ACM-VIT.
This phase began with ACM’s Distinguished Speaker Program featuring Dr. Peter Robinson from University of Cambridge, who explored advancements in Human-Computer Interaction and Affective Computing. His session offered valuable insights into how technology is evolving to better understand and respond to human emotions.
The return of Code2Create after four years stood out as a defining milestone, attracting over 2,500 registrations from participants across the country and marking the most successful edition in its history. The event was further enriched by the presence of Dr. Meenakshi D’Souza, President of the ACM India Council, whose guidance and insights inspired and motivated participants throughout. Her session brought clarity, depth, and a lasting sense of inspiration to the community. Alongside this, Cryptic Hunt also made a comeback with its immersive, puzzle-driven format, challenging participants to apply logical thinking and problem-solving skills in dynamic scenarios.
The chapter further strengthened its learning ecosystem through initiatives like Forktober and Codex Cryptum. These provided students with hands-on exposure to open-source development, cybersecurity, and cryptography through engaging, challenge-based learning.
The second edition of Neural Hack was a 36-hour, data-centric ML hackathon that featured a speaker session by Mr. Krishnasuri Narayanam on Web3 and Tabular Foundation Models, conducted as part of the ACM India Eminent Speaker Program. Additionally, this year’s Reverse Coding witnessed impressive participation, with over 600 registrations and 7500+ submissions, reflecting strong engagement and a growing enthusiasm for competitive problem-solving among students.
A key highlight of this period was the Organizing Committee Selections (OCS), powered by explore.acmvit.in - developed entirely by ACM-VIT members. Designed as an interactive, browser-like experience, it encouraged users to explore ACM-VIT’s journey through hidden elements and discoverable interactions, showcasing the chapter’s emphasis on creativity, collaboration, and experiential learning.
Beyond campus initiatives, we, the VIT University ACM Student Chapter, have been recognised at the ACM Student Chapter Excellence Awards 2025-2026 with the Outstanding School Service Award, one of ACM’s highest global recognitions. This award recognises our initiatives and contributions towards our university, VIT Vellore, making this a truly significant moment for us.
Further strengthening our connection with the global ACM community, ACM-VIT’s Chairperson, Research Lead, along with ACM-W VIT’s Chairperson and Vice Chairperson, had the opportunity to represent the chapter at the ACM India Summit held at NMIMS Indore, engaging with ACM leaders, distinguished speakers, and student chapters from across the country.
At ACM-VIT, we’ve always been exploring new frontiers. z0d1ak, our dedicated CTF team, has brought together students passionate about cybersecurity, problem-solving, and systems to compete at the highest level in global Capture The Flag competitions. It’s been a space to learn, collaborate, and push each other to improve through real-world challenges. We are currently ranked #1 in India, with an all-time best global ranking of #7. We’re proud of how far this has come and excited about where it goes next.
