Coupang and OpenAI brought 60 participants together in Singapore for an overnight hackathon using OpenAI Codex, setting challenges that spanned AI-powered games, product information checks and shopping experiences. Following a series of individual and team assignments, Kay Hng Quek emerged as the overall winner.
AI Grand Prix Singapore 2026 took place from 24 to 25 October at Carousell Campus, with participants selected from 150 applicants. Co-hosted by Coupang and OpenAI, presented by Elev8 and supported by Carousell Group as venue partner, the hackathon marked Coupang’s first event with OpenAI.
Three challenges test different AI development skills
The competition used a multi-challenge format that required participants to complete three distinct assignments with OpenAI Codex, adapting their approaches as the tasks changed. Overall rankings were determined by assessing performance across the challenges collectively.
The assignments began with Game Hack, which focused on creating AI-powered games and gave participants an opportunity to demonstrate their creativity and development skills. Spot the Mismatch introduced a different technical problem, requiring competitors to identify discrepancies in AI-generated product descriptions, images and prices. For the third challenge, Group Hack, all 60 participants transitioned from the individual challenges into 14 teams to develop AI-powered shopping experiences and solutions, adding collaborative problem-solving to the competition.
The overnight format added a time constraint, with participants continuing to develop their solutions into the early hours. To encourage experimentation with different ideas and approaches, organisers provided unlimited Codex usage resets throughout the event. All participants also received OpenAI subscription benefits.
Kay Hng Quek wins overall competition
Kay Hng Quek secured first place after demonstrating consistent problem-solving abilities across the technical challenges, according to the organisers. He received the Champion’s Builder Kit, comprising a Mac mini, DJI Mic 3 and Elgato Stream Deck Plus, intended to support continued experimentation and development.
A total of US$13,000 in OpenAI API credits was distributed among the winners. The top 10 participants were also scheduled to attend a networking dinner on 26 October with leadership and technical representatives from Coupang and OpenAI, providing an opportunity to exchange ideas and discuss their experiences building with AI.
Derrick Choi, Head of Applied AI, Codex (APAC) at OpenAI, described the competition as an opportunity for developers to experiment with different approaches to software development using Codex. “AI is changing how software is built, giving developers new ways to accelerate the journey from concept to product. The AI Grand Prix highlighted the breadth of Singapore’s developer community. It was a great opportunity to give builders a chance to try different approaches with Codex and explore how they could use it to tackle real-world problems.”
Coupang connected the event to its interest in applying AI to commerce. Xin Fu, VP of Engineering at Coupang, identified Singapore’s community of engineers and researchers as an important reason for bringing developers together through the collaboration with OpenAI.
