Frequently asked questions

Students from any discipline, working professionals and independent innovators. Teams have 1–3 members. You do not need to be a computer science student — strong teams mix technical skill with domain understanding.

The registration fee is paid securely during the application itself, through Razorpay. Your team’s build journey begins after payment is confirmed.

No. Payment gives every team the complete three-lock build experience with AI evaluation reports. Physical-final selection is earned through the evaluated locks and human review — it is never bought.

Access to all three build locks, a structured submission journey, AI evaluation reports with criterion-level improvement recommendations, responsible-AI guidance, participant resources, community access, participation recognition and the opportunity to qualify for a physical final.

Yes. Teams may mix members from different institutions. Institution-specific eligibility (such as internal categories for host-institution students) is verified automatically from your email domains during registration.

Each lock is scored by AI against a transparent rubric, producing criterion-level strengths, weaknesses and recommendations. Human evaluators verify important decisions, and large AI-versus-human score differences automatically trigger moderation. AI never independently decides the winners.

A working prototype: live product link, GitHub repository, demo video, screenshots, final architecture, a contribution declaration from every member and honest known limitations.

Yes — Lock 3 requires a repository link so evaluators can inspect what was actually built. The repository can be private with access shared for evaluation, and our GitHub submission guide covers exactly what it must contain.

Yes. Teams indicate their edition during registration — Chennai (28 August 2026) or Coimbatore (25 September 2026). Both editions run the same locks, the same rubric and separate ₹1,00,000 prize pools.

Your team keeps ownership of what it builds. By submitting you grant StudAI One a limited licence to evaluate your work and to feature approved showcase material. The full terms are in the Participant IP section of the Terms and Conditions.

No. Teams qualifying for a physical final arrange and pay for their own travel and accommodation. Food is also not included in the registration fee.

Final selection weighs all three locks plus human review, with Lock 3 (the working prototype) carrying the most weight. Each edition’s jury confirms its own winners at the physical final — two cities, two independent winner sets.