Let's Create Insomnia Once Again | AdventureX 2025 Recruitment Opens

十字路口Crossing十字路口Crossing··0·0

"Any soaring thought will crash to the ground — the gravity of reality is simply too heavy." — Cixin Liu, 2025

"Any thought that soars beyond the mundane will crash to earth — the gravity of reality is simply too strong." — Cixin Liu

In 2025, on the eve of AGI, it's shocking that this problem still persists.

Young people aren't allowed to create.

We're trapped in daily homework and exams, trapped in the relentless pursuit of GPAs and grad school admissions, trapped in big tech companies, trapped in the gravity of reality. Paralyzed by tradition, we cling to convention.

But there are always those who insist on setting the world ablaze. They devour technical knowledge across the internet, contribute to open-source projects, or tinker away in "garages" like a young Steve Jobs. Some step forward to seek investment and start companies. Others mutter to themselves, brewing the roar that will change the world.

There's a passage in "Think Different" that stirs the soul.

You can praise them, imitate them, oppose them, doubt them, glorify or vilify them — but the one thing you can't do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. Maybe they have to be crazy. How else can you stare at a blank canvas and see a work of art, or sit in silence and hear a song that's never been written, or gaze at Mars and see a rover exploring? We make tools for these kinds of people.

We've never lacked smart, capable young people.

What we lack is a space, a stretch of time, where our young people can create without reservation, encouraged and supported to build. So we "made" such a space.

Welcome to AdventureX 2025 — a five-day escape plan that exists only once a year.

Starting today, we're recruiting 800 "modern hippies" with programming, design, or other skills — young people with the courage to create, changemakers willing to take that next step — and inviting them to Hangzhou, China from July 23–27 (Wednesday through Sunday) for the AdventureX 2025 in-person hackathon.

For these five days, we'll provide China's finest creation space, unlimited server resources, credits, hardware equipment, five days of meals and accommodation, deep-dive technical talks, and fun "Blues" activities. All our "modern hippies" will form teams of up to four and build a hardware or software project from 0 to 1, or pursue technological innovation. More importantly, this will be five days of escape without limits or the gravity of reality — you can turn your wildest ideas into reality.

On the final day, all teams will receive a booth to showcase their projects live to the public and the world. The public, investors, founders, and media will experience the projects and exchange ideas on-site. We also welcome anyone interested in AdventureX 2025 to come witness firsthand that China's young people can create, that they have the potential to usher in the next new era.

Preview: AdventureX 2025

  • 120 hours of extreme creation
  • 800+ creators
  • 200+ guests and judges
  • 8000+ participants
  • 6 themed tracks
  • 60+ exhibition exhibitors
  • 20+ partner tracks
  • ¥1,000,000 in prizes
  • 30+ tech talks and "Blues" activities
  • 1 Woodstock Music Festival

Timeline

July 23

  • Super! Expo: 60+ partners will bring fascinating exhibits and commemorative merch — come chat with members of these cool companies and communities!
  • Opening Ceremony: All partner tracks will be announced, plus fireside chats with guests
  • Hacking officially begins: The countdown to extreme creation starts the moment the opening ceremony ends

July 24 – July 26

  • @Workshop: Partners will host engaging tech talks each morning and afternoon — attend as you choose
  • "Blues" Activities: Guests and partners will lead "Blues" sessions — ready to learn mixology, meditation, and more?

July 27

  • Project Expo: Show your project to the world — make sure it works!
  • Closing Ceremony: Track and theme winners announced, plus live prize draws
  • Woodstock Music Festival: Time to go wild — live band performances, and if you've got talent, take the stage!

Creation Without Boundaries

AdventureX is built for young people, and built by young people — most of our team members are still in high school. In 2024, we had a rule: all participants had to be under 26.

This year, we're breaking that rule ourselves. Because we want AdventureX 2025 to be not just a hackathon for China's young people, but a celebration for anyone in the world with a young heart.

For this event, we're opening applications to everyone. Participants under 26 or currently students will still make up the majority of this year's attendees. For those outside this range who still possess a young heart and passion for creation, we'll admit up to 100. Through this, two generations can connect more deeply at the venue, share their experiences, relive youth, and rediscover the feeling of passion.

Also this year, AdventureX 2025 goes global.

Before this post went live, creators from the United States, Canada, Japan, Singapore, the United Kingdom, India, and other countries had already completed registration — the youngest among them just 15 years old. We hope AdventureX 2025 will be a place of freedom that embraces different countries and cultures. In these turbulent times, people from across the world will gather here through their shared passion for creation, using technology to make the world a better place.

Creation as an Equalizing Force

The advent of computers didn't just herald a new era — it handed the superpower of "creation" to everyone. We firmly believe that creation isn't about rising above others, but about a world where no one stands above anyone else.

So this year at AdventureX, we want creation to become a force that transcends class, age, gender, and wealth.

Completely Free

AdventureX 2025 will honor its longstanding commitment to remain free for everyone — participants and visitors alike — with no registration fees. We also plan to provide modest travel subsidies for all visitors, so more people can join this social movement. We want more people to witness, more people to rediscover the fire of youth, more people to understand the meaning of youth creation — and thereby change and influence an era.

Unlimited Resources and Free Meals

Every company claims to value young people, but few truly believe in them. At AdventureX, believing in young people isn't a slogan — it's the foundation and oath upon which we were built. We'll provide participants with as many resources as possible for unrestricted creation: various hardware, robots, drones, 3D printers, cloud servers, computing power. We'll also provide 24/7 self-serve snacks, caffeine fuel, and five days of meals for all participants.

At last year's AdventureX 2024, we invested an average of ¥20,000 per participant.

Free Accommodation

For all participants under 26 or currently students, we'll provide free accommodation options. At the event venue, we'll offer sleeping bags and tents for temporary rest. Near the venue, we'll provide hotels for deep sleep.

Travel Subsidies

For participants under 26 or currently students, we'll provide travel subsidies based on application background and distance. We're actively fundraising to expand this program to cover most participants, with full reimbursement for train or airfare. We don't want travel to be the final barrier to your AdventureX 2025 participation.

"Creation Happens" Program

At AdventureX 2024, we helped 5 young people facing financial hardship attend the event with full expense reimbursement. This year, we're continuing this program. For any participant who can provide valid documentation, we'll reimburse all costs for AdventureX 2025 (excluding additional dining or other travel plans).

Creation as Encounter

Every year's AdventureX is a grand gathering of internet friends. At AdventureX 2025, you'll finally meet in person those tech veterans, up主, indie developers you've long followed, or startup founders you've long admired. Most of us ended up on the path of programming, design, and creation because of a post, a blog, or a story passed down by word of mouth. In fact, we were inspired by their stories to found AdventureX. So every year, we invite them to the event as our guests and judges.

What's cooler: they don't just give fireside talks or lectures — they'll be hidden among the crowd. You might run into them at the Day 1 Super! Expo, or find one sitting next to you at an activity. On the final day, they'll secretly be judging your project. So chat with people around you — you might just discover a surprise!

Here are AdventureX 2025's guests and judges: ....... Actually, saying it outright would ruin the surprise (the only thing we can reveal: this year we have many ultra-cool guests from home and abroad). Follow our WeChat account and social media — we'll gradually reveal more. Two weeks before the event, we'll announce the opening ceremony fireside chat guests. If there's anyone you'd love to see, tell us in the comments.

Of course, we can still share past guests and judges: (Past guest list)

Creation as Endless Exploration of Knowledge

During the middle three days of the event, besides working on your potentially world-changing project, we've prepared numerous @Workshops and "Blues" activities. At @Workshops, you can learn cutting-edge technical knowledge and investment theory — things you'll never find in any school curriculum. Of course, none of this is mandatory. You can choose the @Workshops that interest you most and apply what you learn to your actual project.

Selected past @Workshops: (Past @Workshop list)

Beyond technical skills, we hope you'll learn some fun knowledge that might combine with your technical abilities in unexpected ways. So this year, we've completely upgraded our "Blues" activities. Each evening and into the early morning, we'll offer all kinds of imaginative sessions, including but not limited to:

  • How to mix a non-alcoholic cocktail
  • Sunset meditation
  • Music, code, art
  • And more...

For specific AdventureX 2025 @Workshops and "Blues" activities, we'll gradually announce them on our social media.

Creation as Attitude

The word "creation" isn't just about writing programs with code or designing interfaces. It represents a romantic attitude toward life. Through creation, we want to eliminate poverty, help more people live better lives, help more people live with dignity. It represents humanity's positive, defiant response in the face of suffering.

Every year at AdventureX, we hold the Woodstock Music Festival to celebrate this spirit. We'll invite student charity bands to perform live, and in the latter half of the festival, we'll open the floor — all audience members can take the stage and rock out together!

Project NOVA was launched after AdventureX 2024. In every post, we talk about changing the world, about making the world better. We have no doubt AdventureX fulfills this mission, but we also want to do something tangible and within reach.

"Build a boat, so people from distant shores can come"

After each year's AdventureX concludes, all remaining sponsorship funds are donated to infrastructure projects. Last year, we used AdventureX 2024's surplus to build a basketball court for children in Kashgar, Xinjiang.

Additionally, this year we'll donate all equipment left at the event venue, including tables, chairs, whiteboards, and remaining hardware that we purchased ourselves. We hope these materials can help children in impoverished areas, letting AdventureX endure a little longer in the river of time.

Creation as Voice Heard

This has never been just one person's voice. It's an echo between eras, a collective cry of generations facing the unknown.

In the 1950s, Qian Xuesen and others gave up comfortable lives to return to China. Facing countless obstacles, he stood firm, leading China from zero toward a new era of science and technology. That generation of creators rekindled the flame of hope from the ruins.

But 20 years ago, Qian Xuesen posed a painful question:

"Why do our schools always fail to produce outstanding talents?"

This is the century-old puzzle known as "Qian Xuesen's Question." It concerns not just education, but a nation's wellspring of creativity. Decades later, we're still thinking, still searching for answers.

Today, we're answering this question through action.

We believe outstanding talents don't necessarily emerge from perfect classrooms, but from stages that allow free breathing and free creation. Outstanding talents come from curiosity about the unknown, fanatical love of creation, and obsession with changing the world.

AdventureX isn't the answer itself, but it can be the starting point of an answer.

(Social commentary)

AdventureX 2025 will become a milestone in Chinese history. This will be China's largest, most pioneering hackathon ever — an escape plan belonging to young people. For decades, young people worldwide have flown to the United States, to Canada, to participate in hackathons there. Yet no one ever noticed China — this ancient civilization with five thousand years of innovation history.

But starting today, that will be rewritten.

Every July, young people from across the world will gather in Hangzhou, China — coming to AdventureX, to create together, to push human civilization forward.

A single spark can start a prairie fire. July 2025 — let's lose sleep to creation once more.

If you wish to participate as a "contestant," click "Read Original" or scan the QR code below to register immediately. You can also visit https://adventure-x.org to apply. We look forward to hearing your story and meeting you in July.

If you wish to participate as a "judge or guest," follow us — specific registration methods will be announced in a future post.

If you just want to come and explore, click "Read Original" or visit https://adventure-x.org to register. After completing basic information, you'll automatically receive credentials for the venue.

Partners

As a student organization, we have no direct profitability. So every year's AdventureX depends on broad societal support. This year, we're deeply grateful for the support of the following companies, communities, and media.

Exclusive Content Collaboration Platform

Xiaohongshu

Technology

Exclusive Design Partner

U-D-L

Enterprise, Community, and Media Partners

(Partner list)

Meanwhile, we're seeking additional funding and community support. If you'd like to partner with us, welcome to contact our WeChat assistant: adventurex_01

FAQ

Who can attend? Are there age limits or prerequisites?

We welcome anyone to our event, regardless of programming, design, or entrepreneurship experience. We believe AdventureX 2025's uniqueness comes precisely from the diverse perspectives of participants from different backgrounds. If you're under 26 or currently a student, you can apply as our contestant, or "hippie." If you don't meet these criteria, you can still apply as a contestant, or become our guest or judge. Of course, if you ultimately can't participate as a contestant or judge, we still welcome you to visit our event venue.

What's the application process?

You'll need to complete your application through the AdventureX Portal. Since spots are limited, please provide as detailed information as possible so we can better understand you. After submission, your materials will be reviewed by our team. AdventureX 2025 uses rolling admissions — we'll send out spots in multiple batches, and you'll receive a confirmation email. After receiving confirmation, you'll need to complete acceptance within the given timeframe, or you'll lose eligibility to participate as a contestant this year, and your spot will be released to other qualified participants. AdventureX 2025 uses comprehensive review — no single dimension determines the outcome, and we expect you to provide as much information about yourself as possible. Notably, since we receive over 5x applications compared to available spots each year, we don't conduct any interviews. Your application form will be our sole basis for determining your fit with AdventureX 2025.

Do I need teammates to apply?

All applications are individual — whether you have teammates is not a consideration. If you have regular development or entrepreneurship partners, you'll need to apply separately. Even if you don't know anyone, we encourage you to apply for AdventureX 2025. Many past participants didn't know anyone before the event, but they made lifelong friends at AdventureX and built ultra-cool projects together.

What can I create during these days?

We place no restrictions on what you create. We've designed 6 themes, and any of your ideas can fit into one of them. Additionally, our partners will provide corresponding tracks — specific track topics will be announced at the opening ceremony. You can create any software, web application, hardware, or technological innovation, and participate in one theme and up to 8 qualifying tracks.

If I'm just visiting, what can I participate in?

AdventureX 2025 will be open to the public throughout (except after midnight, when only contestants may remain). On Day 1, you can attend our partner expo and opening ceremony. During the middle 3 days, you can interact with contestants or participate in our @Workshops and "Blues" activities. On the final day, you can experience contestants' projects hands-on and join our music festival. Before coming to the venue, you'll need to register an account on United Portal.