The future of India’s digital economy hinges on skilled and industry-ready youth. With this vision in mind, GUVI—a leading EdTech platform incubated at IIT-Madras and IIM-Ahmedabad—joined hands with the Government of Tamil Nadu to execute one of the most ambitious upskilling initiatives under the Naan Mudhalvan scheme. Their joint mission empowered 5,555 students across the state through a meticulously crafted learning and hackathon program that culminated in the GUVI Hackathon 2025.
This groundbreaking initiative, launched in partnership with the Tamil Nadu Skill Development Corporation (TNSDC), transformed traditional learning by emphasizing real-world application over rote memorization. The GUVI Hackathon 2025 not only equipped students with in-demand tech skills but also exposed them to problem-solving scenarios aligned with industry standards. The event directly addressed the glaring skill gap in India’s technology workforce by empowering the youth to take control of their career readiness.
Naan Mudhalvan: A Vision Rooted in Empowerment
The Naan Mudhalvan scheme, spearheaded by the Government of Tamil Nadu, aims to provide globally relevant skill development to its youth. The program represents the Honourable Chief Minister’s vision of a future where students don’t just secure jobs—they lead industries. By partnering with innovative education platforms like GUVI, the state government ensures students gain not only technical knowledge but also the confidence to apply their learning in practical scenarios.
GUVI, as an empaneled training partner, played a central role in bringing this vision to life. Leveraging its proven track record—especially from the Naan Mudhalvan–Anna University Tamil Nadu Coders Premier League (NM-AU-TNcpl), which trained over 82,500 students—GUVI orchestrated an immersive, hands-on hackathon experience that catalyzed student engagement, creativity, and technical prowess.
Multi-Phase Structure: A Comprehensive Learning Journey
GUVI and TNSDC designed the GUVI Hackathon 2025 in three distinct yet interlinked phases. Each phase tested the students’ foundational knowledge, technical ability, and problem-solving skills.
Level 1: Online MCQ Assessment
The journey began with a 60-minute online assessment featuring 50 multiple-choice questions. A total of 2,885 students participated in this round, and only the top 564 scorers advanced. This phase served as a filter, identifying students with strong conceptual understanding and readiness for advanced challenges.
Level 2: Advanced Online Test
The second level maintained a competitive edge, offering another 60-minute test with 30 advanced questions. From the 564 participants, only 153 students progressed to the final round. This segment of the hackathon tested not just technical depth but also analytical thinking and practical coding skills.
Level 3: Offline Hackathon
GUVI and TNSDC hosted the offline finals across three key cities—Chennai, Thanjavur, and Kanyakumari—offering equitable access to students across regions. The 153 finalists worked on real-world projects and built functional prototypes. They showcased their innovations to panels of judges comprising industry veterans, academic leaders, and government officials. Eventually, the top 33 students earned recognition as official winners of the GUVI Hackathon 2025.
Building Skills Before the Challenge
GUVI didn’t limit its intervention to the hackathon alone. Instead, it focused on comprehensive preparation. Participants received 45 hours of expert-led training spread across 12 sessions. These sessions covered core concepts in software development, artificial intelligence, machine learning, problem-solving, and logical reasoning. Each session aimed to shift students from passive content consumption to active learning and application.
GUVI’s expert mentors incorporated real-time project walkthroughs, code debugging techniques, and group ideation sessions into the curriculum. They instilled in students a mindset to innovate, test, and iterate—a critical quality for success in the tech world.
Transforming Students Into Industry-Ready Professionals
GUVI’s Founder and CEO, Arun Prakash, emphasized the transformative nature of the initiative. “At GUVI, we believe learning should be accessible, hands-on, and relevant to the times we live in. Through this partnership, we were able to train and inspire thousands of young minds to move beyond passive learning and start building real-world solutions,” he noted. He highlighted how the platform’s tools, mentorship, and structured approach helped foster not only skills but confidence and leadership.
His co-founder, Balamurugan, echoed this sentiment. “We don’t just teach technology. We enable transformation. This hackathon gave students a platform to take bold steps into the world of innovation. We’re proud to play a role in shaping the next generation of changemakers.”
Dr. M. Jayaprakasan, CEO of the Naan Mudhalvan Initiative at TNSDC, reiterated how this collaboration aligns with the government’s broader objectives. “The Naan Mudhalvan scheme is designed to equip students with globally competitive skills. Our collaboration with GUVI ensures students don’t just learn theory—they apply it in real time. This is the essence of our Honourable Chief Minister’s vision, where youth are not just job-ready, but future-ready.”
Hackathons as Talent Spotters
The initiative redefined student visibility in the tech job market. Dr. Kalai Selvan Tirucami, former Additional Director of CUIC, Anna University and Advisor to the Naan Mudhalvan initiative, remarked, “Today’s fresher hiring has evolved—hackathons now play as much a role as campus placements. This initiative helps students showcase applied skills, making them visible to top recruiters and multinational companies.”
Indeed, the hackathon served as a scouting ground for top talent. Recruiters, industry experts, and potential employers attended the finals, witnessing the energy and skills of the participating youth firsthand.
Celebrating Excellence and Rewarding Innovation
The GUVI Hackathon 2025 didn’t just identify top performers—it celebrated them. The 153 finalists received Certificates of Achievement, customized college bags, and exciting tech giveaways. Their hard work and creativity earned them more than accolades. GUVI offered the following notable rewards to inspire continued learning and career advancement:
- ZenAIML Student Program Access: The top five individual performers received free access to GUVI’s flagship Zenlite program worth ₹25,999. This six-month, industry-aligned course includes modules on Python, Machine Learning, Deep Learning, NLP, and Computer Vision.
- Internship Offers: The top 10 scorers secured 3-month remote internships, allowing them to gain hands-on experience in data science and AI technical support roles—an invaluable addition to their resumes.
- Premium Course Access: All 153 finalists gained complimentary access to GUVI’s premium self-paced course library, valued at ₹10,000. The collection includes 750+ curated courses across Full Stack Development, Cybersecurity, AI/ML, and more.
These tangible rewards reinforced the value of hard work, resilience, and creative thinking.
A Cultural Shift in Skill Development
Beyond numbers and winners, the GUVI Hackathon 2025 has initiated a cultural transformation in how students perceive learning. This initiative proved that with the right mentorship, training, and opportunities, students from any region can rise to meet global tech standards. It also showed that education no longer ends with classrooms or textbooks—it flourishes through challenges, teamwork, and application.
The hybrid nature of the hackathon enabled inclusivity. Students from Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities got the same exposure and opportunities as those from metropolitan hubs. The state-wide distribution of training and offline finals ensured equitable representation and learning access.
Looking Ahead: A Template for National Replication
The success of this initiative sets a high benchmark for similar public-private partnerships in other states. GUVI, by leveraging its scalable learning platforms, multilingual content, and structured mentorship, has built a replicable model that could uplift thousands more youth across India.
TNSDC, under the leadership of the Naan Mudhalvan initiative, has demonstrated that proactive governance, when aligned with technological innovation, creates immense social and economic value. By empowering students with 21st-century skills, Tamil Nadu is building a digital workforce capable of global contribution.
Final Thoughts
The GUVI Hackathon 2025 stands as a landmark initiative, not just for its impressive scale but for its deep impact. It provided a space for 5,555 students to explore, innovate, and evolve. It moved education out of the confines of classrooms and into the vibrant, ever-changing landscape of real-world problem solving.
With government support and tech-driven learning solutions, India’s youth no longer need to wait for opportunities—they create them. The GUVI and TNSDC partnership, through the Naan Mudhalvan scheme, has illuminated this path forward. And if the results of this hackathon are any indication, the future belongs to these changemakers.