Siriraj ? MIT Hacking Medicine 2025: Health Innovation Hackathon and Conference Celebrates Year-Two Success with High-Caliber Contestants and Global Experts

Prof. Dr. Apichat Asavamongkolkul, M.D., Dean of the Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital, shared that Siriraj ? MIT Hacking Medicine 2025, jointly organized by Siriraj Hospital and MIT Hacking Medicine from October 31 to November 4, 2025, was an overall success. The number of participants across all activities—contestants, mentors, speakers, experts, and audience members—surpassed last year's event.

The hackathon drew more than 1,000 applicants from 33 nationalities, including Myanmar, Indonesia, Singapore, the United States, Canada, India, and China. Over 200 participants were selected for the competition by a panel of judges based on their diverse academic and professional backgrounds. Notably, 66% were working professionals with experience across sectors such as healthcare, engineering, science, software development, business, finance, and public policy, aligning with the event's goal of redefining hackathons as platforms for experts and innovators to develop startup-ready solutions.

The Siriraj ? MIT Hacking Medicine 2025 hackathon concluded with three winning teams in each of its two competition tracks, as follows.

Track: Chronic Diseases

Winner: "Unreliable LLM" Team (Members: Arut Leelataweewud, M.D., Dr. Jing Liu, Natchaya Hongsritong, Dr. Punyapat Saksupapchon, Najaree Janjerdsak, and Charlie Phairojmahakij), for a rehabilitation platform for post-stroke patients that enables care outside hospital settings.

1st Runner-up: "Ruj.ai" Team (Members: Boonyapiwat Somboonsup, Marcus Lee, Kong Kei-lyn, Kieran Tran, Prapaporn Somwong, and Dayang Nurul Asyiqin Mustafa), for an eye mask that integrates glaucoma checks into the sleeping routine of a diabetic patient.

2nd Runner-up: "Now U Can See Cancer" Team (Members: Nantaphan Chongpatiyutt, R.Ph., Nattadon Ariyathanapong, Yada Siripaopradit, Nontakorn Bunluesriruang, and Wilasini Kuptniratsaikul, M.D.), for a novel cancer detection system that profiles multiple tumor types in a single test.

Track: Mental Health

Winner: "KoQo" Team (Members: Wanthita Peaugpoolpol, Sunai Wachirawarakarn, Methawi Rodsem, Wanrapa Sethaputra, Thanisa Sachdev, and Puntila Sapsorn), for an AI-powered app supporting caregivers and families of individuals with autism.

1st Runner-up: "QuitBuddy" Team (Members: Sirapob Seksunwiriya, Sahar Ghaffar, Mahsa Adelifar, Nitit Sunthornhong, and Chan Chaiyochlarb), for a shared journey experience to help people quit smoking alongside loved ones.

2nd Runner-up: "Mind Odyssey" Team (Members: Prathanporn Yantarasri, D.D.S., Yanavee Tantaranukul, Mingrath Mekavichai, D.V.M., Pontip Vibulsiriwong, D.D.S., and Suparuek Saetoen), for a solution that raises awareness and shortens the time to diagnosis for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).

Special prizes were also awarded, including the InterSystems Prize and the PNF Special Prize. Additionally, three standout individuals—Kieran Tran, Eugene Wang, and Supanut Vatesaranasutee—were granted Golden Tickets to the MIT Grand Hack 2026 in Boston, USA.

Beyond the hackathon, this year's event expanded with "Beyond Hack Day," which featured knowledge-sharing masterclasses and one-on-one mentoring sessions focused on medical innovation, artificial intelligence (AI), and startup development. These sessions empowered participants to grow professionally and take their ideas further. Over 30 experts from government, corporations, startups, investors, and academia participated, including Thanasak Hoontrakul, Program Director (Thailand), MIT Hacking Medicine; Dr. Rebecca Mitchell, Managing Partner, Scrub Capital; Nadia Suttikulpanich, Head of Fuchsia Innovation Center, Muang Thai Life Assurance; Evgeny Shvarov, CVC Fund Manager, InterSystems; Assoc. Prof. Dr. Viriya Taecharungroj, Director, Institute for Technology and Innovation Management (iNT); and Charlie Phairojmahakij, CTO, CloudNurse.

In addition to Beyond Hack Day immediately following the hackathon, Prof. Dr. Yongyut Sirivatanauksorn, M.D., Director of Siriraj Hospital, announced that Siriraj and MIT Hacking Medicine will continue organizing year-round programs throughout 2026, including Beyond Hack Fireside Chat, Officer Hour, and Spark AI sessions. These initiatives aim to support healthcare startups with continued training, knowledge sharing, and guidance, underscoring both institutions' commitment to building a concrete startup incubation pipeline and positioning Thailand as a regional leader in the healthtech space.

Siriraj ? MIT Hacking Medicine 2025 concluded with a landmark academic conference under the theme "AI Today, Transforming Tomorrow's Healthcare," which explored the potential of AI in revolutionizing healthcare innovation. The event featured keynote addresses and panel discussions from global leaders in medicine, engineering, entrepreneurship, and healthcare transformation, including Prof. Eric Grimson, Chancellor for Academic Advancement, MIT; Prof. Michael McConnell, Stanford University; Prof. Jorge Cardoso, King's College London; Payong Srivanich, CEO, Krungthai Bank; and Dr. Krithpaka Boonfueng, Executive Director, National Innovation Agency (NIA). More than 250 senior executives across healthcare, engineering, and business attended the conference, fostering the regional health innovation network, setting the stage for future breakthroughs that could transform the healthcare industry.

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