Submissions open for REA Group’s 2026 Hackdays event

Submissions for REA Group’s flagship innovation event, Hackdays, are now open. Customers are  invited to put forward their challenge or idea for the chance to come behind the red doors this  September and work alongside REA’s innovators and tech specialists.  

Submissions require short responses to a few simple questions and are open until 24 July. The selection panel will be looking for meaningful and specific ideas that have the potential for broad  business or industry impact. Selected customers will experience Hackdays in person at REA’s  Melbourne headquarters from 7-10 September. 

For more than a decade, REA’s Hackday events have sparked new ideas, encouraged quick  experimentation, unlocked creative thinking and shipped new value. Customers will work alongside REA’s tech experts and will be matched with a tailored team of software engineers, product  managers, designers, data scientists, marketers, and AI specialists to suit their specific challenge.  

REA Group Executive General Manager, Sales, Gerard Connell, said inviting customers to Hackdays builds on REA’s long history of customer-led product development and provides an  opportunity to stress-test ideas at speed and explore practicalAI applications.  

“Our customers have long informed and shaped our product development through advisory  groups, panels and usertesting.We're excited to extend the opportunity for customers to join the  full Hackdays experience end-to-end, bringing their big ideas to life through ideation, testing and a working prototype in a matter of days,” Gerard said.  

“Innovation is part of REA’s DNA, and our customers know where the biggest business  opportunities exist and where better tools, processes and workflows could unlock better  experiences and growth. Combined with REA’s product, technology, AI and innovation capabilities,  there is an opportunity to progress those ideas towards real solutions across the four-day sprint. 

“The best hacks are usually grounded in a real, specific business problem or a genuine opportunity.  Partcipants don't need technical knowledge, just a clear articulation of the challenge and why it  matters. It could be an innovative idea you've never had the resources to test or a workflow that  keeps holding your team back. We want to hear about it.”